Pokemon: Masters
by Jaxxon
Summary: Ash is now Destiny, but how will he cope with it?
1. On the Road Again

Pokémon: Masters  
Chapter One – On the Road Again

"All right, Jessie," Ash said as he recalled Squirtle, "try this one."  
Ash and Jessie were having a two on two pokémon match. Ash had already beat Arbok with Squirtle but lost to Lickitung.  
"Jigglypuff, I choose you," he said as he tossed in a pokéball.  
"Jiggly," she greeted.  
"This should be easy," Jessie smirked. "Lickitung, wrap it with your tongue."  
"Lick," it cried as its tongue went after Jigglypuff.  
"Jigglypuff, dodge it and use sing," Ash yelled.  
"What?" Jessie replied. "Are you trying to put us all to sleep?"  
Ash smiled as Jigglypuff jumped out of Lickitung's way and began her song. When both rival pokémon and trainer were asleep, Jigglypuff blew herself up.  
"Jigglypuff," she said as she pulled out a black maker.  
"Hold it," Ash said as he ran up to his pokémon. "I thought I showed how you to focus that attack."  
"Jiggly," she sighed.  
"Guess we got to train some more," Ash said as he shook Jessie awake.  
"Not now, James," she said waving him off. "Just a few more minutes."  
"Ah, Jessie, it's me, Ash," he said to the half-awake girl.  
"Huh?" she said as she opened her eyes. When she saw who it was over her, she jumped up.  
"Don't ever do that again," she screamed as she brought a mallet onto his head.  
"Yes, ma'am," a dazed Ash replied.  
Jessie recalled her still sleeping Lickitung as Ash picked himself off the ground. He had been training for next year's Pokémon League Competition, but he always had distractions around.  
"We better get back to the Pokémon Center," Jessie told him.  
"Right," Ash replied as they headed down the path.

"I'll bet you this time, Brock," James said as he wildly mashed the buttons of the controller.  
"I don't think so," Brock laughed as he calmly made a few quick moves with his.  
Misty laughed. "You're both mine," Misty replied.  
"What just happened?" two puzzled boys asked.  
Pikachu was laughing hysterically. After fifteen rounds of Mario Kart 64, Misty still held the lead in the battle mode.  
"Maybe I should be Bowser," Brock said as the door to their room opened.  
"What are guys up to?" Ash asked as Jessie fell on the bed and he sat down next to Misty.  
"Betting these two at Mario Kart," Misty beamed.  
"Well," Ash said noticing the looks on the older guys faces, "shouldn't we check out soon?"  
"Not until our pokémon are healed," Jessie said from the bed. "That should be in an hour."  
"How about another game?" Brock and James suggested.  
"How about we go someplace alone?" Ash whispered into Misty's ear.  
"Sure," Misty giggled. "See you guys later."  
As the couple left the three older teens and pokémon, Brock sighed. "It's just not fair!"  
"What's not fair?" James asked. "With Misty gone, I got a chance of betting you."  
Brock shook his head. "And I thought Ash was dense." He turned to the confused ex-Rocket. "Both you and Ash have girlfriends, and I don't."  
"I have a girlfriend?" James asked with a shocked look on his face. He looked over at Jessie who had fallen asleep on the bed. "Oh, Jessie isn't my girlfriend."  
"Sure, James," Brock sighed. "Sure."

"Here are your pokémon," Nurse Joy said as she handed Jessie and Ash their pokémon.  
"Thanks," Ash said as he put Squirtle's pokéball back on his belt.  
"Have a nice day," Nurse Joy smiled as the group walked out of the Pokémon Center.  
"Where to now?" Ash asked.  
"How about we head to the Viridian Forest," James said. "I want to get some bug pokémon."  
"Yuck," Misty replied. "Not more bugs. How about we had to the beach. I want to catch some water pokémon."  
Jessie glared at Ash. "Don't side with your girlfriend if you know what's good for you," she said as she pulled out a mallet. "I'm with James on this one."  
Ash sighed. Luckily, he was saved by Brock. "How about we head over to the Safari Zone. I managed to get some permits to let us capture pokémon there."  
"That's great, Brock," Ash cheered. "Let's go."

"I can't believe this," a blonde-hair boy said. "We used to be on top."  
"It's Dad's fault," a younger black-hair boy replied. "He was too worked up about that Ketchum kid."  
"Shut up," said another black-hair boy who was taller than the other two. "Dad must have had a good reason."  
While these three argued, a fourth and older boy was watching them. "Be quiet, all of you."  
The three younger boys looked at their older brother. "Rob is right," he told them. "Dad always had a reason for what he did."  
"And look where it got him, Shane," the younger black-hair boy replied. "He's in jail, and Team Rocket is gone."  
The older boy laughed. "You are so simple minded, Matt," he said. "Now Dad has an even better alibi for running his empire."  
"What do you mean?" the blond boy asked.  
"You'll see, Jake," Shane answered.

"Rocket, you have a visitor," the guard said to the man lying on the cot.  
"Thank you," he said as he was led to the visiting room.  
Waiting for him was an eighteen-year-old young man wearing a black suit. "Hello, Shane," he greeted his visitor.  
"Hello, Father," Shane replied. "I trust you have been treated well."  
"Yes," the prisoner replied. "How is the family?"  
"My brothers are a little confused," Shane replied, "but I think they will understand soon enough."  
"Good," Giovanni said, "but how about little Phil?"  
Shane dropped his head. "He has been real difficult since you were arrested."  
"He must be disciplined," Giovanni said grimly.  
"I will take care of it then," Shane replied.  
"Good," Giovanni said to his son. "Is there anything else?"  
"Not really," he answered. "Some of the family is still scattered, but most have found their way home."  
"Give it some time," he said as the guard informed visiting hours were almost over. "Soon, everything will be back to business as usual."

"I can't believe I didn't catch a single pokémon," Ash whined at the lodge.  
"Cheer up, Ash," Misty said as she was polishing a pokéball. "You can't capture every pokémon in one day."  
"That's easy for you to say," Ash replied. "You caught a Shellder, Brock caught a Rhyhorn, and Jessie caught a DoDuo."  
"Hey, you forgot about me," James said from across the room. "I caught a Tauros, an Exeggcute, and a Slowpoke."  
"Don't remind me," Ash muttered. He leaned back in the couch he was sitting on. "Some Destiny I'm turning out to be. Even James is capturing more pokémon than me.  
"Pika?" Pikachu asked his trainer.  
"I'll be fine," Ash told his pokémon. "I just feel like I'm going to disappoint everyone."  
"Don't worry, Ash," Misty said trying to comfort him. "It's just one day. I'm sure you capture something tomorrow."  
Ash smiled at her. "Thanks, Misty." He looked out the window at the stars. "I'm going out for a walk."  
"Mind if I come?" Misty asked.  
"I just want a little time to think," he said as he headed for the door. "Besides, I want to get some wood for that fireplace over there."  
"A cozy fire, how romantic," Misty sighed. "All right, just hurry back."  
Ash picked up his pokéball belt which he had laid on a table. "I will."

"Bulbasaur, chop down that limb with your vine whip." Ash told the little pokémon.  
"Bulba," he replied as the limb fell to the ground.  
"Thank you," Ash said as he added it to the pile of wood he had already collect. "Return."  
After putting the pokéball on his belt, Ash leaned against a tree. The past year had been one of the most eventful of his life. He found his love, his father's murderer, and a new destiny, but he felt he was going to mess it all up.  
He sighed as he heard some movement in the bushes. He turned and saw a male Nidoran leap out into the open.  
"Ran ran," it challenge.  
"Wow, a Nidoran," Ash said. "Jigglypuff, I choose you."  
"Jiggly?" she asked at being woken up.  
"Jigglypuff, use slap and weaken that Nidoran," Ash said.  
"Jigglypuff," she replied as she jumped in front of the wild pokémon and slapped it a few times.  
"Ran ran," it cried.  
"All right, Jigglypuff," he thanked the pokémon. "Now, pokéball go."  
The pokéball hit the Nidoran on the head, and it disappeared inside. Ash and Jigglypuff watched as it rocked a few times and finally stopped. It disappeared, and both jumped for joy.  
"I caught a Nidoran," Ash shouted.  
"Jiggly," Jigglypuff cheered.  
Ash recalled Jigglypuff and picked up the pile of wood. _Maybe everything will be all right,_ Ash thought as he walked into the lodge.  
Misty was sleeping on the couch while he could hear the others snoring from the bedrooms. Ash smiled as he placed the wood in the fireplace and lit them. Ash sat and watched Misty while the flames' light danced on her face.  
"My own angel," he said as he watched the sleeping girl. He gently nudged her.  
"Ash?" she said as she woke up. "You were out for a long time."  
"I had a lot to think about," he replied as he wrapped his arm around her and stared at the fire.  
"You seem better now," she said as she looked into his face.  
Ash turned from the fire and looked at the girl in his arms. "I also caught a new pokémon," he replied.  
"That's nice," she said as she tried to snuggle into a closer position. "What type?"  
"A Nidoran," he answered.  
"Well," Misty said as she closed her eyes, "I hope you won't doubt yourself for awhile now."  
"Why should I?" Ash laughed. "After all, I'm going to be a Pokémon Master."  
Misty laughed. "Looks like I have the old Ash back."


	2. Taking Care of Business

Pokémon: Masters  
Chapter Two – Taking Care of Business

A guard knocks against the wall of the telephone booth. "Five minutes, Rocket."  
"Yes, sir," Giovanni replied. He thought in about four more weeks he running this place. The warden was corrupt enough for him to control, but the guards would take time.  
"So how is little Phil?" he said into the receiver.  
"He knows his place now, Dad," the voice on the other end replied. "Shane is watching right now."  
"Now that Phil is taken care of," Giovanni said as he eyed the guard other in the corner, "I have a little favor to ask you."  
"What?"  
"Arrange for a lawyer to get Butch and Cassidy released," he answered. "Their sentence is almost up anyway, so that shouldn't be too hard of a problem."  
"I get on it right away," the voice replied. "Anything else?"  
"That's all for now," Giovanni said as the guard came to return him to his cell.

After spending three days in the Safari Zone, Jessie and James had collected their limit of pokémon. Jessie had besides her Arbok and Lickitung a Doduo, a Scyther, a Pinsir, and a Paras. James had made a big haul on the first day with getting a Tauros, an Exeggcute, and a Slowpoke, and he later captured a Ponyta. Ash, Misty, and Brock on the other hand did not do as well. They decided to let Jessie and James collect some more pokémon since they already captured a new pokémon each.  
"Where to now?" James asked as they walked away from the Safari Zone.  
"How about Fuchsia City?" Ash suggested.  
"Why do you want to go there?" Misty asked.  
"No reason," Ash replied. "It's just the closest town."  
"Well, I want to go to Celadon," Misty said. "I want to see if Erika has any new perfumes."  
"That sounds great," Jessie said. "We could hit the mall there."  
The mention of that four-letter word sent a chill down the boys' spines. "Think we should suggestion something else?" Brock whispered to Ash and James.  
"And end up air born," James replied. "There's no way around this."  
Ash nodded. "James, that may have been the smartest thing you said this week."

After leaving Pikachu, Togepi, and Meowth with the rest of their pokémon at the Pokémon Center, Misty and Jessie dragged the three reluctant boys to the mall. Brock had it easy since neither of the girls were his girlfriend, but that left Ash and James carrying their load.  
"A little help here would be nice," Ash complained to Brock. Ash was carrying a pile of boxes twice his size while Brock only had two bags.  
"The price you pay for having a girlfriend," Brock laughed.  
"What about me?" James whined since he was carrying all of Jessie's purchases. "She's not even my girlfriend."  
"Right," both Ash and Brock replied.  
"Oh, look, Misty," they heard Jessie squeal. "I bet this swimsuit will look great on me."  
"And I really like this bikini," Misty replied.  
"Bikini," Ash sighed as he began to daydream.  
"But Misty, isn't that a size or two small for you?" Jessie asked.  
Brock and James almost fell over when Ash ran past them.  
"You know," James commented as he tried to regain the stability of the stack of boxes, "Ash is starting to act a lot like you."  
"Yeah," Brock smirked. "Our little boy is growing up."

They decided to return to the Pokémon Center and leave their stuff there before going to see Erika. "Mind if I make a phone call?" Ash asked the others.  
"Go ahead," Misty said as she went to pick up their pokémon.  
Ash dialed up Professor Oak.  
"Hello?" the voice of a young man asked.  
"Tracey," Ash replied. "It's me, Ash."  
The video monitor came on revealing the Pokémon Watcher. "We just got your Nidoran," Tracey said. "It looks very healthy."  
"That's good," he replied. "We just came back from the Safari Zone. I'm thankful I didn't catch another herd of Tauros."  
Tracey laughed. "So that's where they all came from."  
"Jessie and James captured a bunch of new pokémon," Ash continued. "I wonder if they are going to go off and collect badges soon."  
"Oh, that reminds me," Tracey said as he walked out of the camera's view. He returned with a flyer in his hands. "They're looking for a new gym leader in Viridian since Giovanni was arrested."  
"I'm surprised they haven't done it already," Ash replied.  
"Seems no can best the test," Tracey answered. "Maybe you should try."  
"I'll think about it," Ash said.  
"Ash, come on," Misty yelled from the exit.  
"Gotta go," Ash told his friend as he hung up.

__

"After several accidents in its laboratories, officials at Silph Co. have announced that they have everything under control," the radio in Erika's shop said.  
"Monica," Erika said to her assistant. "Please switch it something else."  
"All right," Monica replied as she changed the station.  
"Ash, I hope you won't embarrass me like you did last time," a voice from outside said.  
"Meowth, I don't want to dress him like a girl again," another said. "One cross-dresser is enough."  
"Hey," a third voice said. "If you had better costumes, I wouldn't had to…"  
"Hold it," Erika said as the group walked into her store. "I don't want any fighting in here."  
"Sure thing," Brock said as he ran up to Erika. "You're so pretty."  
"Monica," Erika called to her assistant. "Bring me the essence of Gloom."  
"No!" Jessie, James, and Meowth cried. They pulled Brock away from Erika.  
Erika laughed at their reaction. "What can I do for you?"  
"I wanted to see if you had any new fragrances," Misty said while Meowth leashed Brock to a pole outside.  
"Try this one then," Erika said as she pulled out a vial containing a blue liquid.  
Misty dabbed a bit on her hand and sniffed it. "That's wonderful," she exhaled.  
"Let me see," Jessie said as she sampled the perfume. "It's good but not my style."  
"Well," Erika smiled, "how about this one?"  
She had a vial containing a green liquid in her hand. Jessie washed off her hands and sampled the perfume.  
"That's better," she sighed.  
While the two girls continued to sample Erika's perfumes, Pikachu and Togepi were allured by another sent.  
"Pika?" Pikachu sighed as he sniffed the air.  
"Yeah, I smell it too," Ash replied. "I don't think Erika keeps ketchup-covered apples here, though.  
Pikachu dropped his head. He knew Ash was probably right.  
He looked out at Brock outside. "Meowth, don't you think tying him to that pole was a bit harsh?"  
Meowth looked up at him. "And getting a whiff of that essence of Gloom isn't?"  
Ash thought about that. "You got a point," he admitted.

"Seeing that you have several favorable reports from the administrator of your correctional facility," a judge said to the two defendants before, "and that your sentence is almost completed, I hereby grant you six months parole."  
"Thank you, your honor," the defendants' lawyer replied.  
"Court is in recess," the judge said as he walked to his chambers.  
"Well, Cassidy," a hoarse voice said, "look's like we're free."  
"Yeah," the blond girl replied. "Time for some Love Power."  
They walked outside and saw a limousine waiting for them. The window rolled down, and a voice told them to get end. They complied since they recognized the chauffeur as Julie, Giovanni's former assistant.  
When inside, they saw a thirteen-year-old blond-hair boy sitting in front of them. "I hope everything went well," he said as Julie closed the door.  
"We're here, aren't we," Cassidy replied. "I didn't expect one of Giovanni's brats to spring us."  
"Ah, Cassidy," Butch whispered to his partner. "I don't think it's such a good idea to mouth off to the boss's kid."  
Jake leaned forward. "Be grateful you're dealing with me instead of Matt," he told them. "He's been on edge ever since Dad was arrested."  
Butch and Cassidy looked at each other. They had heard rumors about this but never thought it possible. "Who's running Team Rocket, then?" Butch asked.  
"Dad still is in charge," the younger boy replied, "but Shane handles the day to day operations."  
The boy pushed a button on the console next to him. "Julie, take us back to HQ."  
"Right away, sir," she replied.  
He turned back to the older teens. "Dad, wanted you out," he told them. "Since Shane and Rob are both busy with other matters, you'll report directly to me. Got that?"  
Butch and Cassidy sighed. "Yes, sir."

After leaving Erika's store, Brock spent five minutes complaining about being tied up. Ash and James then spent the next ten minutes dragging his body after being knocked unconscious by Jessie.  
"Jessie," Ash said as they finally arrived to the Pokémon Center, "you really need to learn to control your temper."  
Jessie eyed him causing Ash to retreat behind Misty.  
"Coward," Misty laughed.  
"Smart, I think," Meowth muttered under his breath.  
"Pikachu," the yellow pokémon laughed.  
Jessie ignored the comments from the peanut gallery as they went up to their rooms.  
"See you, tomorrow," Ash said as he and James dropped Brock on the floor of their room.  
"No, kiss good-night?" Misty asked with a smirk on her face.  
"Oh, brother," Meowth sighed as the two kissed. "Are they going to be like this for now on?"  
"Pika?" Pikachu shrugged.  
"I think I preferred it when they were always fighting," Meowth added as he got into his bed.


	3. Default Chapter Title

Pokémon: Masters  
Chapter Three – Masters of the Heart

Ash and James had been sent out to refill the canteens while Brock and the girls set up camp. After they found a stream and fill the canteens with water, they decided to rest before walking back to the other.  
"James, why don't you say Jessie's your girlfriend?" Ash asked the older boy.  
James sighed. "She just isn't, Ash," he replied. "We're just friends."  
"But you two have been together longer than Misty and me," Ash commented. "Are you saying that since you meet her, you never wanted to be more than friends?"  
James did not answer the question, but Ash knew the answer. "We should get back to camp," James replied.  
"Sure," Ash sighed.

"As soon as Ash and James get back," Brock told the girls who had finished setting up camp, "we can eat dinner."  
"Okay, Brock," Misty replied. Pikachu and Meowth where busy playing poker with Charizard, Squirtle, and Bulbasaur.  
"Read 'em and weep," Meowth beamed. "Full house."  
When Pikachu, Squirtle, and Bulbasaur threw their cards down on the tree stump they were using as a table, Meowth greedily reached to grab the pot until Charizard showed his cards with a huge grin.  
"What?!" Meowth screamed. "A royal flush!"  
"Bulbasaur (I'm broke)" Bulbasaur sighed.  
"Squirtle," Squirtle agreed.  
"Pi pikapi (I want my money back)" Pikachu replied as he shuffled the deck.  
"Me too," Meowth said as he glared at the dragon who was counting his chips.  
"(Think I'll cash in now)" he roared as he left the table.  
"Hey, come back here with my money," Meowth yelled as Charizard disappeared into his pokéball.  
"Pi cha ka," Pikachu said as he shook the pokéball furiously. Hearing something like a raspberry, both pokémon gave up.  
Misty laughed at the scene of the two pokémon wondering to join Squirtle and Bulbasaur who were playing with Togepi. She looked over at Jessie who was watching the sunset.  
"So, how often does James take you out," Misty asked. It had been a while since her and Ash had chance for a date, and she wanted to know if this was unusual.  
"Oh," Jessie sighed with a blush, "me and James don't date."  
Hearing this, Meowth started laughed. "You two do make such a cute couple, though," he replied.  
"Who asked you?" Jessie yelled back.  
Misty laughed nervously at this response. "Sorry," she said, "I just thought that…"  
"Please," Jessie interrupted. "Me and James."  
"That's what Ash and Misty used to say," Brock said from where he was cooking dinner.  
This time both Misty and Jessie blushed. Jessie was about to respond to this challenge when James and Ash appeared with the canteens.  
"Sorry it took so long," Ash said as he sat next to Misty. "The stream was further away than we thought."  
"We would've gotten back sooner," James grumbled as he sat on the ground across from Jessie, "if Ash hadn't gotten us lost."  
Misty laughed. "I guess some things never change," she said as Ash blushed from embarrassment.  
Jessie sighed as she watched the couple begin a petty argument. It seemed more from play than anything serious, and it reminded her of her own feeling for the boy next to her.  
James, on the other hand, was ignoring them all together. He was too busy staring at Jessie. Ever since they had first met at pokémon Tech, they had been close friends, but when they started working together in Team Rocket, he began to notice something strange about his friend. _She is so beautiful,_ he thought.  
The two couples were interrupted when Brock announced that dinner was ready. Ash and Misty stopped their fighting and grabbed some food. Jessie and James followed after them still thinking about each other.

Shane Rocket looked out the eleventh floor window of the Silph Co. headquarters in Saffron. He reflected back at the many years that he had spent learning how to replace his father but never dreamed it would be so soon. A knock at the door broke his mediation.  
"Enter," he said.  
"Mr. Rocket," a minor executive greeted as he came into the office, "I have here the lab reports you requested."  
Shane never turned away from the window. "Leave them on desk and return to your duties," he replied emotionlessly.  
"Yes, sir."  
When Shane heard the door closed, he looked back out the window. The sun was sinking beneath the horizon ending the day.  
_Soon will come the night,_ Shane thought as the twilight's glow lingered. _The cold night._

Butch and Cassidy were waiting by a videophone impatiently.  
"The little twerp should've called by now," Butch grumbled.  
Cassidy did not reply. She was too busy thinking about the new pokémon that they were given since their old ones where still in police custody.  
The phones ringing startled both teens, but Cassidy composed herself before she answered. "Hello?"  
The videoscreen came on revealing Jake Rocket. "I got your first assignment," he told them. "You are going to Viridian City and battle for control of the gym."  
"Right, boss," Cassidy replied.  
"Don't screw this up," Jake warned them.  
Butch and Cassidy both gulped. This kid may be younger than they, but he had all the power.  
They let out a sigh of relief when the monitor went blank.  
"Guess, we're on the road to Viridian City," Butch sighed.  
"Come on," Cassidy replied. "Let's get going."

"Your pokémon will be ready in about an hour," Nurse Joy told the trainers.  
"Thank you," Brock said a he stared at her.  
"Snap out of it," Jessie yelled as she brought her mallet on his head.  
"Thank you very much, Jessie," Ash replied as he lifted the now unconscious Brock up. "I don't know whose worst, you or Misty."  
Both girls glared at him, but he held Brock up as a shield.  
"Hurry up, Ash," James called trying to save his friend. "We need to sign up for the match."  
Misty looked over at Ash. "Your not really going to be a gym leader are you?"  
Ash laughed. "No," he said as he followed James out the door. "What's being a gym leader compared to being a Pokémon Master?"  
Misty glared at him again. "Bet you couldn't even do that job right," she called.

They were only a few trainers at the sign up booth for the matches. This was due to the fact that they had to pass a written test in order to compete. James lucked out since he picked up a few things from working with Giovanni and placed high enough to enter.  
While James stood in line to register, Ash looked over the rest of the test results. He then noticed who placed above all the rest.  
"How ya doin', Ash?" a familiar voice said from behind him.  
"What are you up to, AJ?" Ash said before he turned around.  
When Ash turned around, he saw that AJ's Sandshrew had evolved into a Sandslash. "Just trying out to be the gym leader here," he replied. "I figured I be the best for the job especially since I have over five hundred victories."  
Ash's mouth dropped when he heard this. "Over five hundred?"  
AJ shrugged. "I lost count past 532," he replied.  
Ash shook his head. "You're incredible, AJ," he sighed.  
James came running back from the table to join the Ash. "I got a match in a few hours," he told him. "Oh, hello," he said when he noticed AJ. "Have we met before?"  
"Sure you have," Ash replied. "This is AJ, the guy who had the 'unofficial' gym."  
James thought for a moment then remembered what Ash was talking about. "Right the guy who really bet Pikachu," he said.  
Ash growled at him, and AJ laughed. "Yep," he said with a smile. "That was me and good ole Sandslash here."  
"Sandslash," the pokémon said as his trainer rubbed his head.  
"Let's go get Jessie and the others," James said as he pulled on Ash's sleeve. "I want her… uh, I mean, them to see me at my first match."  
Ash and AJ both laughed at James's slip up. "Someone has a crush," AJ laughed.  
"We're just friends," James sighed.  
"Please," Ash replied as he tried to stop laughing. "But you're right. Besides, I promised Misty I would take her out for lunch."  
AJ blinked at his old friend. "You and the red-head got together?"  
"Yeah," James replied. "They're quiet sickening about it too."  
"At least we don't try to hid it," Ash snapped back. James just laughed nervously at this.  
"See you guys later," AJ said as Ash and James headed back to the Pokémon Center.

"I'll sign up," Cassidy told Butch, "since I passed the written test."  
Butch murmured something under his breath. Even with cheating, he still failed the test.  
After registering, Cassidy looked at the schedule. "My first match is tomorrow morning," she said when she saw her name.  
"Good," Butch replied. "That give us all night to rig the ring."  
Cassidy laughed. "No way I'm losing this."

Misty and Ash had spent about fifteen minutes staring at each other before they ordered at the diner.  
While waiting for their order to arrive, Ash asked, "What do you think about Jessie and James?"  
Misty laughed. "They deserve each other," she replied.  
"Now if we could only get them to admit that," Ash agreed.  
"That's the hard part," Misty sighed  
Ash nodded in agreement when they're food arrived. "Oh, I ran into AJ today," Ash told her as she began eating her meal.  
"Is he here to compete for the gym?" she asked between bites.  
"Yeah," Ash replied. "I feel sorry for James."  
Misty laughed. "You're right."

James was down to his Wheezing, but his opponent only had a Pidgey left.  
"Wheezing, sludge attack," James called.  
"Wheezing," the pokémon replied as the black goo fell on the Pidgey, sending it to the ground.  
The referee raised the red flag. "Pidgey is out, match goes to Wheezing and James."  
James jumped around the arena. "I won, I won!"  
While Jessie went up to congratulate him, Ash, Misty, and Brock began to scheme on how to get the two together.


	4. Default Chapter Title

Pokémon: Masters  
Chapter Four – Battle for the Gym

"Will the trainers please approach the arena," the judge said in the Viridian gym.  
Cassidy took the green corner while some other trainer took the red.  
"This will be a two-on-two match, no time limit," the judge told them.  
"Go, Vileplume," Cassidy called as she threw in a pokéball.  
"Go, Arcanine," the other trainer said as his pokémon appeared.  
"Vileplume, stun spore," Cassidy ordered.  
"Flamethrower," the other trainer replied. The Arcanine's flamethrower attack burnt away the on-coming spores but lost all its power after that.  
"All right," Cassidy growled. "Use Solar Beam."  
"Arcanine, fire blast," the other trainer called.  
Before Vileplume could charge up its solar beam attack, Arcanine's fire blast sent it to the edge of the field while its petals were aflame.  
"Vileplume, return," Cassidy sighed as she recalled her pokémon. She pulled out another pokémon. "Wartortle, I choose you."  
"Arcanine, take down attack," the other trainer replied when he saw he had lost the elemental advantage."  
"Wartortle, use your bubble beam," Cassidy ordered.  
Arcanine ran head first into the bubbles and collapse from the lost of its fire.  
"Arcanine," the trainer cried. "Return. Go, Magnemite."  
Butch watched from the side of the arena. "Cassidy, lost the advantage," he said to himself. "Good thing I'm around."  
He watched as the Magnemite thundershocked the Wartortle who had withdrew into its shell. He pulled out a large magnet and pointed to the arena. The electric pokémon, sensing its attraction, turned away from its opponent. Wartortle took the opportunity to head bash the thing to the ground. The judge announced that Cassidy was the winner.  
Butch smirked as he put the magnet back into his backpack. "Only three more rounds," he laughed as he joined Cassidy by the exit.

"Victory to the green trainer," the judge announced.  
"Good work, Butterfree," AJ told his pokémon as it returned to its pokéball.  
AJ walked over to Ash, Misty, and Brock who had just returned from James's match.  
"I'm in the semi-finals now," he told them.  
"So is James," Ash replied as they walked to the Pokémon Center. "Never thought that he would have gotten this far."  
"He really has improved," Brock commented. "And with those new pokémon from the Safari Zone, he has a better selection."  
"But he's still no match for me," AJ laughed. "I'll show him if he's my next match."

That night, Butch and Cassidy were back in their hotel room. Butch was watching TV while Cassidy was taking a nap. She had a long day with her two matches. She had placed into the semi-finals. Both laughed when they saw that James had also made it that far too.   
When someone knocked, Butch turned the television and looked to see who it was. "Great," he sighed.  
He opened the door to reveal a thirteen-year old boy. "Nice to see you two are doing so well," Jake said as he entered the room uninvited.  
Butch did not know if that was meant as a compliment, insult, or nothing at all. "Thanks, boss."  
Jake looked over at the sleeping girl on the bed. "Wake up," he said as he shook her.  
"Huh?" she asked still half asleep. She opened her eyes and saw Jake Rocket standing over her.  
"Boss!" she shouted as she jumped up.  
Jake eyed the couple. "I just came to make sure everything was going as planned."  
"I made it the semi-final," Cassidy gloated.  
"I see," Jake replied. "I trust you'll make sure she wins."  
"Yes, sir," Butch said to the younger boy.  
Jake looked out the window of the room. "I'll stick around to make sure you two don't mess this up," he told them.  
"Yes, sir," they sighed.

The next morning, James woke up early to see who he was competing in his next match. He sneaked quietly out of the room he was sharing with Brock. In the lobby of the Pokémon Center, he saw Jessie was also up.  
"Morning, Jes," he greeted.  
Jessie looked up from her coffee with a smile. "Good morning, James," she replied. "Ready for your next match?"  
"Actually, I was just going out to see who I was competing," he answered.  
"How about some breakfast first?" she offered.  
James enjoyed of spending some time with her. "Sure," he said as he walked over the counter with a box of donuts on it.

Shane had spent the night at his office in the Silph Co. HQ. He was awakened from his sleep when his phone began to ring. Annoyed at the intrusion, he picked it up. "What?" he barked.  
Two of his younger brothers, Rob and Matt, appeared on the screen. "We thought you should know," Rob, the elder of the two, replied, "Jake ran off to Viridian to oversee the takeover of the gym."  
"You woke me up for that?" Shane asked as his generally cold demeanor returned.  
"Jessie, James, and Meowth are also there," Matt answered, "along with the Ketchum kid."  
Shane sighed. He did not want to get involved with Ketchum just yet. Team Rocket was still rebuilding itself after its last encounter with him.  
"Does he know about them?" Shane asked.  
The younger sixteen and ten year old nodded. "Let's hope his foolishness pays off," he said as he canceled the connection.

"Our next match is between James and Cassidy," the announcer said over the speakers.  
"Good luck," Jessie said as she unknowingly gave him a kiss on the check.  
James blushed, and Jessie joined him when she realized what she did.  
"Thanks," he said as he entered the arena. He looked over at his opponent.  
"You?" he shouted at her.  
"Miss me?" she jeered.  
"This is a two-on-two match," the judge said to the trainers. "No time limit. Begin."  
"Time to show you pathetic loser who the real Team Rocket is," Cassidy sneered as she tossed in a pokéball.  
"Primeape," the pokémon shouted.  
"Good think I'm no longer in it," James called back. "Last I heard, the boss was in jail."  
He threw a pokéball, and an Exeggcute appeared.  
"Primeape, low kick," Cassidy ordered.  
"Exeggcute," James called, "stop it with disable."  
"Egg," it replied as its eyes began to glow.  
"Prime?" Cassidy's pokémon asked when it could no longer move.  
"Now, use egg bomb," James shouted.  
Primeape fainted after this finally attack. Cassidy recalled it and threw in Flareon.  
"Fire blast," she shouted before James could give an order.  
Flareon's blast was too much for the pokémon who fainted from it.  
_I only got one water-type,_ James thought. _I hope Slowpoke can do it._  
"Go, Slowpoke," he shouted as he tossed in the pokéball.  
"Slow," it greeted.  
"Flareon, quick attack," Cassidy said.  
"Flare," it said as it ran circles around Slowpoke before attacking it.  
"Slowpoke," James cried. Luckily the pokémon only took minor injuries. "Use water gun."  
Slowpoke tried its best, but Flareon was too fast for it.  
"Now," Cassidy smirked when she saw she was winning. "Rage!"  
Flareon's black eyes turned red as it attacked Slowpoke. Slowpoke cried out in pain.  
"Enough," James shouted. "Slowpoke, return."  
With James ending the match, the judge raised the red flag of Cassidy. "Sorry, loser," she mocked as she left the field.  
James dropped his head as he walked outside of the gym.  
"James!" a voice from behind shouted.  
He turned and saw Jessie running up to him. "Hi," he sadly greeted.  
Jessie looked at her old friend. His hopes were dashed at winning control of the gym, but she knew losing to Cassidy made it even worst.  
"Team Rocket is going to get the gym back," he sighed.  
"Not if I can help it," another voice replied.  
They turned and saw AJ walking up to them. He had won his match earlier that morning and was going to the finals. "I'm the best there is," he told them, "and I ain't going to lose to no Rocket."  
Jessie and James laughed. He had as much confidence in himself as Ash. "Good luck, then," James said as he offered his hand.  
"Thanks," AJ replied as he shook it, "but you need it more than me."

While Jessie consoled James after his defeat, Ash, Misty, and Brock along with Meowth and Pikachu were watching the final match between AJ and Cassidy.  
The judge announced that each trainer could use two pokémon and AJ would start the match.  
"Go, Sandslash," he called as his pokémon jumped into the arena.  
"Wartortle," Cassidy yelled. "I choose you."  
"Sandslash," AJ called, "fury swipes."  
"Wartortle, water gun," Cassidy yelled.  
Even though the stream of water hit Sandslash square on the chest, it kept coming closer to Wartortle.  
"What?!" Cassidy shouted. "He should be out cold from a blast like that!"

Ash laughed from up in the stands. "AJ sure trained him well," he commented.  
"Unlike some trainers," Misty replied.  
Ash looked at her. "You're never going to stop trying to get under my skin, are you?"  
Misty laughed. "Nope."

Wartortle was thrown onto the ground after Sandslash performed a seismic toss on it. Cassidy recalled it.  
"Go, Vileplume," she shouted as she tossed in the pokéball.  
"Fill the arena with stun spore," she commanded.  
"Sandslash," AJ called seeing the sparkling powder fill the air, "go underground."  
Sandslash obeyed and disappeared beneath the surface of the gym floor. Vileplume looked over the arena for the missing pokémon.  
"Now!" AJ shouted.  
"Sandslash!" the pokémon shouted as it came up under the plant-pokémon.  
"Vileplume," it cried as it was thrown back to the surface.  
The judge looked at the fainted pokémon and announced AJ as the winner and new gym leader.  
"Not so fast," Cassidy shouted as Butch joined her.   
"Prepare for trouble and make it double," they chanted.  
"To infect the world with devastation,"  
"To blight all people with our nation,"  
"To denounce the goodness of truth and love,"  
"To extend our wrath to stars above,"  
"Cassidy,"  
"Butch."  
"Team Rocket circles the earth both day and night,"  
"Surrender now or you will surely lose the fight."  
"Yeah, right," AJ finished for them. "Sandslash, fissure."  
"Sand," it shouted as it leapt into the air once again. "Slash!"  
When it came down, it hit the ground so hard a crack formed on the floor of the gym. Butch and Cassidy where sent flying out of the gym's skylight from the force of the attack.  
"Looks like Team Rocket's blasting off again," they cried as they sailed off through the air.

Jake watched it all from a hidden spot in the gym's dark roof.  
"Finally," he said as he made his way down, "one more of Dad's mistakes is done away with. Team Rocket has no business with the Pokémon League except to destroy it."

Ash and AJ were saying good-bye when Jessie, James, and Meowth reached a decision about their next stop. "Ash, we have something to tell you," Jessie told him once they had left the gym.  
"What is it?" he asked her.  
Jessie looked at James who nodded back. "We leaving," she told him.  
Ash looked back at Misty and Brock who were equally surprised. "Why?"  
"We want to start our own pokémon journey," James replied.  
"We could do that together," Ash told them.  
"No," Jessie sighed. "If you did that, you only be hurting yourself since we need the badges you already have."  
Ash looked at the two older teens and sighed. "Guess this is good-bye?" he said.  
"Don't worry, Ash," James said as he, Jessie, and Meowth headed down the path to Pewter while Ash and the others stayed at the crossroads to Pallet. "We'll see you at the Pokémon League."  
"You better be there," he called to them as they set out for their own adventures.


	5. Default Chapter Title

Pokémon: Masters  
Chapter Five – Unheeded Warnings

"Mind if I have a look?" Tracey asked Dr. Eve.  
"Go ahead," she replied as she stepped out from in front of the engraving.  
He quickly made a sketch of the engraving.  
"Any idea what it means?" he asked as he was finishing the drawing.  
Eve leaned in closer to the engraving. "It's older than most of the cravings in other parts of the city," she said as she studied the foreign language. "I think it says: _None may enter but Destiny_."  
She turned to the Pokémon Watcher. He arrived a few days ago to deliver the book she had given to Ash. The results of the testing did verify the book was older than Pokémopolis, but its date was also before the earliest Destiny legends. She had managed to translate portions of it, but some parts were dialects she did not recognize.  
"There's something unusual about this word," she said as she traced her figures across the word.  
"What's so unusual?" Tracey asked.  
"Well," she replied. "It's the word for 'Destiny.' Nothing strange there, but it's in a male form. Normally it's female."  
"Maybe it's a mistake," Tracey shrugged.  
"Possibly," she agreed. "We can find out more information when we get inside."  
Tracey gulped. "What about the warning?"  
"Don't worry about that," Eve laughed. "Many of these old ruins have stuff like that."  
She looked at the concerned look on Tracey's face. "Still," she continued, "we'll be careful."  
She pulled out a hammer and chisel and slowly clipped the mortar away from the engraving. Once it was removed, Tracey used a crowbar to enlarge the hole so they could slip through. Before entering the opening, Eve shined a flashlight inside.  
"See," she told Tracey. "There's nothing to worry about."  
They then entered the dark chamber.

"Care to explain yourself?" Rob asked his younger brother Jake.  
"I knew Butch and Cassidy couldn't win the gym with the pokémon I gave them," he told his older brother.  
"Now why did you do that?" Matt demanded.  
Jake glared at his brothers. "Why should Team Rocket be running a gym?"  
"It was Father's pleasure," Shane replied before the others could speak, "but I had my own uses for it."  
"Like what?" Jake demanded.  
"It would've been our foothold into the Pokémon League," Shane informed his younger brothers. "Now, we have little influence inside the league."  
Shane stepped closer to his brother. "Team Rocket is under my control now," he told him. "That means, you are under my control."  
Jake glared at him. Rob and Matt might fear Shane, but he had his own plans. "Yes, sir," he snarled.  
"Good," Shane replied as he turned to his other brothers. "We have more pressing issues than the gym to consider."  
Rob nodded. "Many of the high ranked members of Team Rocket were arrested with Dad," he informed his brothers. "The rest were in deep cover assignments so I have no means of contacting them."  
Matt smiled. "I know of three we could bust out," he smiled.  
His three older brothers looked at him. Being the youngest, Matt was more of a lackey than one of the Rocket Brothers. "Go on," Jake replied.  
"Three members were arrest about two months before Dad," he told them, "but their trial was only a few days ago."  
"So how does that help us?" Rob asked.  
"They're being transferred to the maximum security prison on Cinnabar Island," he continued. "We could hit the transport and bust them out."  
Shane thought about that. "Who are they?"  
"Scott and his team," Matt smiled. "The TR Psychics."

Tracey was shining his flashlight around the chamber. On the walls were several carving of ancient pokémon.  
"Aerodactyl, Omanyt, Kabuto…" he said as he listed the ones he recognized. "What is this place?"  
"Look over here," Eve replied. "These images are of more recent pokémon. Only, they are in their lower evolutionary states."  
While sketching the carvings on his pad, Tracey thought he heard something moving behind them. Glancing other his shoulder, he did not see anything but shadows.  
"I believe I finally found it," Dr. Eve said as she approached the center of the chamber.  
"What is this place?" Tracey asked as he heard movement behind him again.  
"The temple of Destiny," she answered.  
Suddenly, a pair of bright red lights appeared in the darkness.  
"What's that?" Tracey shouted.  
The light from outside the opening was beginning to fade. Tracey and Eve turned around and saw the door was resealing itself.  
"We got to get out of here," he said as he grabbed the young archeologist's hand.  
Before he could make to the narrowing hole, something very heavy hit him on the back of the head. He fell to ground and heard Eve scream before he passed out.

"Where to now, Ash?" Brock asked the younger boy.  
"I thought that maybe we could see if Dr. Eve will let me see that book again," he replied as they walked down the path.  
"Why are so interested in that book?" Brock asked. "It's not like you could understand it."  
Ash let out a nervous laugh. He never fully explained the whole Destiny thing to Brock and Misty. He still did not understand it all. That was the reason that he wanted the book.  
"I thought maybe she could tell me more about Destiny," he replied.  
Brock shrugged it off. He was getting a chance to spend time with a pretty girl.  
Ash sighed when Brock stopped questioning him. He hoped Misty would not start on him. His dream never came true.  
"Ash, why are being so secretive again?" she asked.  
"There are some things that I just can't tell you," he replied. "At least, not yet."  
Misty sighed. Her boyfriend had been acting weird since he woke up from a nightmare last night, and it worried her.  
"Ash, please tell me what's wrong," she told him.  
Ash lowered his head. "I'm sorry," he said, "but I don't understand it all."  
Misty thought about another tactic that usually worked. "Just because you're the new Destiny, doesn't mean you have shut out your friends!" she shouted at him hoping he yell back what was wrong.  
"Why can't you see that I have to do this alone!" he snapped back.  
His remark shocked Misty. This was the first time he snapped back angry at her since they started seeing each other. She turned and walked ahead to where Brock and Pikachu were.  
"Wait, Misty," Ash called. She ignored him as she started to talk with Brock.  
"Great going," Ash chided himself. "Now you've gone and made her mad."

When they arrived at Dr. Eve's camp, her assistants were running around calling out her name. Ash managed to catch one who was running to check forest for her.  
He explained that she and Tracey went into a section ruins that they had recently uncovered yesterday but never returned.  
"Have you checked in the ruins yet?" Ash asked.  
"Yes, you idiot," the assistant snapped. "That was the first placed we checked."  
"Sorry," Ash replied.  
"I don't got time for this," the assistant said as he ran off into the forest.  
"Touchy, wasn't he," Ash remarked.  
"You would be too if Misty just disappeared," Brock replied.  
"Pika," Pikachu agreed.  
Ash felt his chest getting warm. He looked down and saw he medallion glowing. "It's doing that glowing thing again," he said to himself.  
He looked at the ruins of the ancient city. "Come on," he told them as he ran into the ruins.  
"Wait for us, Ash," Misty called after him.

Inside the ruins, they followed the cables for the lights until they reached the end of the tunnel.  
"Dead end," Brock sighed.  
Ash looked at the engraving on the wall. "Maybe not," he said as he knelt down to get a better look. He noticed that the pokéball medallion was glowing even brighter.  
"Ash?" Misty asked.  
He looked at the engraving. _None may enter but Destiny,_ he thought. _But I'm Destiny._  
He stepped away from the wall and pulled out a pokéball. "Charizard, I choose you," he said as he threw the pokéball to the ground.  
"Ash, what are you doing?" Misty asked.  
"Making a way in," he replied. "Charizard, blast a hole through that wall."  
Charizard roared and blasted the wall. When the hole was big enough for them to enter, Ash recalled the pokémon since it was too large to enter the hole.  
"Ash, why did you do that?" Misty asked.  
Ash walked in. "I had to," he answered.  
Misty, Brock, and Pikachu looked at each other. "He's acting really weird," Brock said to the others.  
They pulled out some flashlights from their backpacks and followed him in.

Ash saw two people lying on the floor of the chamber when he stepped in.  
"Tracey, Dr. Eve!" he cried as he ran to them.  
He shook Tracey until he heard a moan. "Something got me from behind," he said as he opened his eyes.  
"Just stay still," Ash said as he checked Eve.  
When Brock and Misty entered the chamber, they ran over to their friends. "Are you okay?" Brock asked as Tracey tried to sit up.  
"Yeah," Tracey replied with a moan. "I just got one bad headache."  
"What happened?" Misty asked.  
Two red lights answered her question. Ash jumped in between his friends and the glowing lights.  
"I am…" he stopped. Somehow, Ash Ketchum did not fit the end of that sentence anymore.  
"I am Destiny," he finished.  
The two red lights drew closer, leaving the shadows. A large Marowak stood before him.  
"Destiny," it replied. "I have waited a long time for this."  
It raised its bone into the air. It began to glow and sent out a burst of light, blinding Ash. When his sight returned, he saw his friends were gone and the chamber was lit by several torches.  
"Who are you?" a voice cried out from behind him.  
He turned around and saw a man dressed as a priest holding a staff in his hands.  
"I don't think I'm in Kansas anymore," Ash said as he raised his hands.


	6. Default Chapter Title

Pokémon: Masters  
Chapter Six – Losing Your Way

"I said, who are you?" the priest asked again.  
"I'm Ash Ketchum," he replied.  
The man frowned. "Ketchum? Never heard of that clan," he grimaced. "Where are you from?"  
"Pallet, sir," he answered.  
"You seem to come from nowhere, young man," the priest said as he lowered his staff. "Are you a pilgrim?"  
"Yeah," Ash lied.  
"Then I'll allow you some privacy while you pay homage," the priest said as he exited the chamber.  
Ash let out a sigh of relief when he was finally alone. He then noticed that his clothes felt different. He looked down and saw he was wearing a robe similar to the priest's but it was brown and made of cheaper material.  
"This is too weird," he thought as he looked around the chamber. It was the same chamber as before but only newer. The carvings in the wall were not as corroded as before, and torches lit the room.  
So taken back by his surroundings, Ash did not noticed someone else had entered the temple.  
"Hello," a voice said from the once sealed doorway.  
Ash turned and saw a girl about his age standing there. She was wearing a priestess robe with her long blonde hair tied behind her head.  
"May I help you?" she asked.  
"Uh," Ash replied. "My name's Ash, and I seem to be a little lost. Can you tell me where I am?"  
"You must really be lost to not know this place," the girl laughed. "You are in the temple of the coming destiny."  
Ash frowned. _This just keeps getting better,_ he sighed.  
"Can you tell me where the nearest town is?" he asked the girl.  
"That would be village in the forest," the girl replied "It's about a day's walk to the north."  
Ash thought about that. "Sounds like Viridian," he said to himself.  
"But you can't leave now," she told him, "it's almost night."  
The priest returned and saw the two talking. "Anna," he chided her, "what have I told you about disturbing the pilgrims?"  
"But he said he was just lost," she replied.  
The priest looked at Ash. "Is this true, young man?"  
"Yes," Ash replied hoping not to get the girl in trouble.  
"Well," the priest frowned. "You meant no harm in lying, I assume. Just be on your way now."  
"Please, sir," Anna plead with the priest, "it's late, and the monsters in the forest will get him if he leaves now. Can't he stay the night?"  
The priest smiled at the girl. "Such a noble heart," he sighed. "Very well, he may stay the night."  
"Thank you, sir," she said.  
"Just make sure he does a chore or two to pay us," the priest replied as he left the chamber once again.  
Anna turned to Ash. "You are lucky," she told him as she led him to a door he had not seen before. "Old Cecil rarely lets pilgrims stay here, let alone travelers."  
"What did you mean about monster in the forest?" Ash asked as she took him into what he thought was a library.  
"There are bug monster in the forest," she said as she went to a shelf and pulled down a book. "Didn't you know about them?"  
"I knew about the bug pokémon in the forest," Ash shrugged.  
"Pokémon?" Anna said confused. "I never heard of that word. What does it mean?"  
"I'll show you," Ash said as he reached for a pokéball but found that they were all missing.  
"Great," he sighed. "I don't have my friends or my pokémon. Can this get any worse?"  
Anna looked at him as if he were crazed. "Ash, is everything all right?"  
Ash looked at an old book lying on a crude wooden table. "The Book of Destiny," he said. "What is it doing here?"  
"You are a strange one to know so little about this place," Anna said as Ash walked to the book. "Where else should the book of prophecy be but in the temple of the coming destiny."  
"You mean," Ash said with surprise in his voice, "that Destiny hasn't come yet."  
"No," she laughed. "If Destiny had come, why would we fear the monsters of the forest?"  
Ash was beginning to put two and two together. _That Marowak must have sent me back in time,_ he thought, _but why?_  
While still in thought, Ash heard a familiar cry coming from outside.  
"Squirtle! (Help!)"  
Ash ran outside and saw several beedrils attacking an injured squirtle.  
Ash grabbed a stick and waved it at the bug pokémon. "Get away from him!" he shouted at the bugs.  
Seeing the human coming, the beedrils flew back into the forest leaving the squirtle to human.  
"Are you okay?" Ash asked the pokémon.  
"What are you doing?" Anna screamed from behind.  
"Those beedrils were going to kill him," he replied as he picked up the fainted creature. "I couldn't let that happen."  
"But he is a monster," she yelled back.  
Ash shook his head. _Maybe I'm here to act as Destiny,_ he thought as he took the squirtle inside.  
"Ash, I will not allow you to take that thing inside the temple," she told him as he walked to the door.  
"I would think that Destiny would want people and monster to care for each other," he snapped back.  
"No," she replied standing in his way. "We are to rule over them."  
Ash shook his head again. "Then you better learn something different," he told her. "Now are you going to throw me out?"  
Anna was shocked by his response. Most people looked forward to the day when they would rule over the monster they feared now, but this boy was not afraid of them and wanted to care for them.  
"Who are you?" she asked again.  
"Just someone who wants to help an injured squirtle," he replied.  
"Cecil is not going to like this," she sighed as she let him in.

"All right, you three," the guard told the three teens in the boat, "don't try anything funny."  
"Relax," another guard told him. "With those psy-chains, they're not going anywhere."  
The boat ride to Cinnabar would take another two hours, and Jeff was getting anxious. "What I wouldn't do to get my hands on Sabrina and the Ketchum kid," he snarled.  
"Calm yourself," Scott told him. "We'll get our chance at revenge soon."  
"Quiet," the first guard told them.  
Suddenly, the boat was rocked from a hit on the port side. The guards' radio came on with a screaming voice. "We've been hit, it screamed. "Abandon ship."  
The three psychics grinned at the guards hurriedly unattached them from the boat. Once he was somewhat free, Jeff punched out one of the guards.  
"Hold it right there," the another shouted but was tripped by Mary since he just unchained her feet.  
"All right, Jeff," Scott told him, "get the keys and get us out of these chains."  
"Sure thing," Jeff replied.  
Once he found the keys on the fallen guards, he released Scott from the psy-chains. Scott then unlocked the chains on Jeff and Mary.  
Using his returned psychic powers, Scott blasted a hole in the side of the ship. Outside he saw a speed boat waiting for them.  
"Get in," said a black uniform Rocket.  
Leaping over into the boat, the three psychics saw another person on the boat.  
"I guess we should thank you," Scott said to the boy sitting on chair.  
"No need," the ten year-old Matt replied. "Just repay me the favor."  
"And would that be?" Scott asked.  
"Eliminate Ash Ketchum," Matt smiled.

Ash sighed as he was busy washing the dishes in a stream. He been suck at the temple for almost a week now with no hope of returning to the future.  
"Stop that, Aqua," Anna laughed as she was playing with the squirtle.  
"They really seem to be getting along," Ash sighed as he finished with the dishes. "It reminds me of Pikachu."  
He walked over to the girl who was now tickling the laughing pokémon.  
"Thanks, Ash," Anna smiled as they walked back to the temple.  
"For what?"  
"For saving Aqua," she replied. "He really is a good monster."  
Ash laughed. He never thought of squirtles, even that Squirtle Squad, as monster before. They were just too friendly.  
"Maybe you should train him," Ash laughed.  
"Train?" Anna questioned. "For what?"  
"For battling," Ash replied. "That way, you don't have worry about the wild monsters."  
Anna looked down at Aqua. "But is he big enough to fight such larger creatures?"  
"With his water attacks," Ash told her as they walked in, "he can take on monsters several times his size."  
"Can we start tomorrow?" she asked.  
"Sure," Ash sighed. "Tomorrow we'll start."

After Cecil and Anna were asleep, Ash walked outside and looked up at the stars.  
"Misty, will I ever see you again?" he sighed.


	7. Default Chapter Title

Pokémon: Masters  
Chapter Seven – Finding Your Path

"Ash, wake up," Misty said as she shook the sleeping boy. "Of all the times to take a nap."  
The bright flash from the Marowak had left them all dazed for a few moments, but it had knocked Ash out.  
"Maybe we should get him out of here," Brock suggested.  
"I don't think that Marowak is going to let us," Tracey replied as he pointed to the Marowak now guarding the exit.  
"This amazing," Dr. Eve commented while ignoring the others. "These inscription are still intact."  
"How can you be thinking about stuff like that," Misty yelled at the young archeologist. "Ash is unconscious, a Marowak is blocking the door, our batteries are almost dead, and you just want to look at silly inscriptions!"  
"Well," Eve replied to younger girl. "This is what I do. Maybe there is something in here about all this."  
"Very well," Misty sighed.  
"Calm down, Misty," Brock said as he placed his hand on her shoulder. "I'm sure everything is going to work out."  
"Thanks, Brock," Misty whispered back. She looked over and stared at the Marowak blocking their freedom.  
_Why are you doing this? _she thought.  
_Wait and see,_ another thought in her head told her.

"All right, Aqua," Anna said to her pokémon. "Knock down that apple with your water attack."  
"Squirtle," the little turtle replied before he sent out a stream of water at the tree.  
The apple fell to the ground, and Anna ran and picked up.  
"Thanks," she said as she walked back to her friend.  
"Anna," Cecil called from the temple. "I need you and Ash to go to the village for supplies."  
Anna sighed. "Sure," she called back to her guardian as she went to fiend Ash.

She found Ash sleeping in a meadow near the forest.  
"Aqua," she said to the squirtle. "Wake him up."  
He drenched Ash who then jumped up shouting. When he was on his feet, he saw the girl and pokémon laughing at him.  
"Very funny," he replied as he tried to shake some the water off. "Now I got to change."  
"Oh, you'll dry off," Anna replied while trying not to burst out laughing again.  
"Why did you wake me up?" he demanded.  
"Cecil wants us to go to the village," she answered.  
"Okay," Ash said as they started walking to the forest.

Along the way, Anna said she needed a rest. They stopped near a stream that Ash strangely remembered. Looking around, he saw that Anna was sitting in a familiar place.  
"This is where I first met Misty," he sighed.  
Anna smiled. Since he arrived a month ago, he talked about the girl at least once a day.  
"Don't worry, Ash," she comforted him. "I'm sure you'll see her soon."  
"I hope so," Ash sighed. "I really hope so."

Jeff walked up to a house wearing a suit and tie. _She'll know where he'll be,_ he thought as he rang the doorbell. _He is her son._  
The door opened, and Jeff was greeted by a "Mime?"  
"Who is it Mimi?" a voice called from inside.  
Jeff watched as the Mr. Mime stepped out of the way of a woman he was seeking.  
"How may I help you, young man?" she asked cheerfully.  
_People this sweet should be put out of my misery,_ he reflected.  
"Hi, I am from the firm of Abra and sons," he replied. "We are searching for a Mr. Ash Ketchum."  
"Please come in," she said offering him to enter her home.  
"Is Ash here?" he asked as he walked in.  
"No," she replied as she showed him the way to the living room. "He went off with his friends to some ruins nearby."  
He handed her a business card. "Well, if he comes by," he told her as he walked back to the door, "tell him to call his number."  
"All right," she said as she let him out.  
"What nice young man," she commented as she went back inside.

"Scyther!" a voiced screamed in the forest.  
"Of all the bug types," Ash said as he ducked under the blades of the enraged pokémon, "we would have to run into a Scyther."  
Anna was hiding behind a rock afraid of the monster that was trying to kill her friend.  
"Aqua, do that attack I taught you," she told the little turtle.  
"Squirtle," he complied as he shot a stream of water at the Scyther.  
This only served to make the Scyther even angrier and take a new target.  
"Anna, look out," Ash called to his friend.  
The Scyther went straight for Aqua, knocking him down. It gave a triumph yell as it stood over the cowering squirtle.  
"No!" Anna shouted.  
Ash watching in amazement as her eyes turned gold. Soon, Aqua began to glow in the same color.  
"Aqua," Anna commanded, "hydro pump!"  
The squirtle let loose the massive amount of water onto the bug pokémon sending it off to the horizon.  
"Destiny," Ash whispered.  
Anna turned to him with her eyes still glowing.  
"No, Ash," he replied.  
The forest began to fade away leaving only the squirtle. Ash was confused what was happening.  
"I am only Anna," she told him as her eyes returned to normal. "You are Destiny now."  
She laid her hand on the Squirtle's head. It began to glow again, but this it was the light of evolution.  
"Wartortle," he greeted.  
"How are you doing this?" Ash questioned.  
Anna smiled as once again Aqua evolved into Blastoise. 

"This was my role as Destiny," she said to Ash as she patted her pokémon. "I help to show pokémon their full potential."  
She turned back to him. "You will do the same when time comes."  
Ash looked. "I think I understand."  
Ash then thought about the time he had spent with her. "Was that how it happened?"  
Anna let out a little laugh. "I was raised in my own temple," she told him. "And my first pokémon was a squirtle named Aqua. The city of Pokémopolis sprung up around the temple a few years after my passing."  
Ash watched as the temple returned but this time, it was not in the middle of the woods but in a busy city.  
"Before the great tragedy, my children lived here and taught others the secrets to becoming Pokémon Trainers," she told him. "My son choose a hidden valley in the forest to serve as their retreat."  
"The Valley of Destiny," he reminded himself.  
"The book of Destiny as you call it was left in the temple at Pokémopolis until the tragedy," she added.  
Ash watched as a giant Kadabra and Gengar began their battle in the city streets. While citizens of the city were running for their lives, a woman about the age of 25 was busy sealing the door to the temple. Beside her on the ground laid the book Dr. Eve had discovered.  
"She knew that the temple would be need again," Anna commented as watched her finish her task. "She left the bonekeeper to guard it until the second Destiny arrived."  
When the two giants held each other in a stalemate, Ash watched the woman left up four objects, three black balls and the artifact that he found when they uncovered the ancient city. The objects sent out beams of light causing the pokémon to disappear.  
The woman let out a final sigh of relief as the pokémon were captured in the objects. She then raised her head and looked at the burning city. All the people were gone, and the jigglypuff that once guarded the city lied unconscious over a crumbling building.  
She dropped her head in defeat. After hiding the book and objects within the ruined city and placing the jigglypuff in an odd shaped statue, the woman walked outside her former city. Ash watched as her eyes became blue and the earth rose above the city forming a mountain.  
The scene faded as the woman walked crying into the forest. Ash turned Anna who was crying at seeing the sight.  
"So long ago," she whispered, "yet still so painful."

Scott, Jeff, and Mary looked at the old ruins. Scott noticed that a strange presence was here.  
"This should be interesting," he commented as the three walked into the city.

"Come on, Ash," Misty said as she tried shaking him again. "Wake up."  
"Please, Misty," Tracey as he tried to calm her down.  
"But we've been trapped down here all day," she whined, "and Ash hasn't stirred once."  
"I think I got it," Eve said as she looked away from an inscription on the wall. "Apparently this Marowak has been waiting for someone called the second Destiny."  
Misty looked down at Ash. "Guess this is what you get for trying to help people," she sighed.  
"Oh, it gets a lot worst little girl," a voice mocked.  
The Marowak, which had its back to the opening, was sent flying to Brock. It jumped back up and took a defensive position in front of Ash.  
"So, this is Ash's Misty," Mary said as she looked down at the girl holding Ash. "Not much to look at."  
"Don't be so harsh," Jeff laughed. "After all, Ash is no prize himself."  
"I wouldn't say that," Mary replied. "After all, he did somehow survive Scott."  
"Enough, you two," Scott snapped at his teammates. "We got business to take care of."  
He eyed the boy lying on the floor. "I don't know how you bet us," he said feeling that spot in his memory was erased, "but once we're finished with you, we'll take care of Sabrina."  
"Not if I can help it," Brock yelled back. "Go, Geodude."  
"Let's go, Scyther," Tracey joined in.  
As the two pokémon appeared next to Marowak, they glared at the three intruders.  
"Alakazam," Scott said as he tossed in a pokéball, "let's get this over with."  
The Geodude, Scyther, and Marowak glanced at each other and leapt in unison at the psychic pokémon. Unfortunately, it created a light barrier which blocked them from getting near it.  
"Now let the fun begin," Scott said as the eyes of the three psychics turned red.


	8. Default Chapter Title

Pokémon: Masters  
Chapter Eight – One True Destiny

"Now let the fun begin," Scott said as the eyes of the three psychics turned red.  
"Alakazam, use psychic on Ash," Scott commanded his pokémon, but while it was powering up for the attack, Pikachu shouted something at him.  
This froze Alakazam in his tracks, much to the disgust of its trainer.  
"I order you to destroy that boy," Scott repeated to the disobedient pokémon.  
"Kazam," it replied.  
"What do you mean, no?" Scott shouted back. "Just take care of the other pokémon while we handle this."  
What Scott did not see was that Alakazam was powering up his psychic attack and aiming at them.  
"KAZAM!" it shouted as the beam narrowly missed Jeff.  
"Why you little," Jeff yelled at the pokémon. "Scott, recall that traitor."  
"Very well," Scott sighed, as he was forced to recall his most powerful pokémon. "We'll just have to deal with these brats ourselves."  
Mary rubbed her hands together in joy. "Just the way I like it," she said as she focused on the elderly Scyther.  
"Scyther!" it screamed before it fainted from the pain.  
"Nice," Jeff remarked. "Now, my turn."  
He looked at Geodude who was pounding away at the barrier the psychics were creating.  
"Dude?" it said as the scene for him change.  
He was surrounded by blastoise, each trying to nail him with hydro pump.  
"Geo," he screamed while he tried to dodge them.  
"What's up with Geodude?" Misty asked as she watched the rock pokémon swing at empty air.  
"Must be a confusion attack," Brock sighed. "Geodude, return."  
Jeff and Mary laughed as the three trainers were forced to decide how to battle. Marowak had retaken its defensive position between the Rockets and Ash.  
"What can we do?" Misty asked the two older boys. "Our pokémon can't possibly stop those three."  
"Maybe if we let them all out," Brock suggested.  
"Pika," Pikachu agreed as he pulled all the pokéballs off Ash's belt.  
"Good idea," Tracey said as he released Marril and Venonat.  
"One or thousand," Jeff called at them. "We can take them all."  
"Vulpix, go!" Brock shouted as he released his only usable pokémon.  
"All right, everybody out," Misty said as she tossed up her pokéballs.  
"Pi pikapi," Pikachu shouted to Ash's pokéball. Suddenly all of them opened, revealing six very angry pokémon.  
"Maybe we should retreat," Mary suggested.  
"No," Scott told them. "We finish this."

"Ash," Anna told him after she composed herself, "your friends need you."  
Ash turned to her. "But I still don't understand everything," he replied.  
"Time will teach you," Anna told him.  
"I hope so," Ash said as Anna and Aqua disappeared into the shadows.

"Brock," Misty cried as Pikachu collapsed on the ground, "this isn't working."  
He looked at all the fallen pokémon on the ground. So far, they only managed to breach the barrier once with Charizard, but Scott took him out when he saw how powerful the dragon was.  
"We have no other choice," he said as he yelled to Squirtle to try a skull bash.  
Dr. Eve was caring for Misty's Psyduck who was knocked out when Mary caved in the ceiling over him, Bulbasaur, and Marowak.  
"Starmie, Staryu, double team with water gun," Misty called to her two remaining pokémon.  
Jeff laughed as he sent the three water-pokémon to the far side of the chamber. That left only Jigglypuff and Snorlax able to battle.  
"Jigglypuff, sing!" Tracey yelled as he dodged an energy blast from Mary.  
The little pokémon jumped back and prepared to begin her sleep song when Jeff disabled her voice.   
"Silence is golden," he mocked as Jigglypuff started to mutely cry.  
"It'll be okay," Misty said as she picked up Jigglypuff's pokéball. "How about you take a rest?"  
"All right, Snorlax," Brock said to final pokémon. "Body slam that barrier until it cracks."  
"Snor," it replied as it jumped up and crashed down on the barrier.  
"He's too heavy," Scott said as he strained to keep the huge pokémon off their heads.  
"It's working," Misty cheered hopefully.  
"Time to sleep," Mary said in a soothing voice to the giant pokémon hanging over them.  
"Snorlax," it yawned as it slid to the ground and fell into a deep sleep.  
"Great," Brock sighed. "Now we got two sleeping bodies to worry about."  
"We'll take care of one of them," Jeff called at them.  
Scott looked up, relieved that the strain on his psychic powers was over. "Is that all you got?"  
"Toge," the little egg pokémon challenged as it leapt out of Misty's arms.  
"No, Togepi," Misty shouted as she reached to pick her back up. "You're too little to fight."  
"Aw," Mary mocked. "Mothers always want to keep their children under their wing."  
"That's why there are fathers," a voice from behind Brock, Misty, and Tracey called. "Togepi, use Angel Kiss attack."  
The little egg began to glow and started to float in mid-air. It passed through the Scott's barrier and kissed each of the psychics on the forehead stunning them.  
"Now, Proudness," he shouted to the pokémon.  
The three psychics began to glow, but it faded away without harming them.   
"What feeble attacks," Jeff laughed. He started to create a energy ball when it exploded in his hands.  
"Jeff!" Mary yelled as she looked at her fallen comrade.  
Scott watched as the egg pokémon hurried back to a confused Misty. "Show yourself Ketchum," he shouted.  
Ash walked between Misty and Brock while carrying Pikachu. "You want me," he replied. "Here I am."  
Scott's eye turned blood red as he began to focus all his energy, but it became too much for him to control.  
"Pride goes before the fall," Ash laughed as Scott tried to regain control over his own powers.  
Scott screamed in pain as he fell to the ground panting. "We'll be back," he muttered as he tossed a smoke bomb at the four trainers. When the smoke cleared, Team Rocket had vanished.  
"That was amazing," Tracey said as he began to sketch Misty holding Togepi. "I've never heard of those attacks before."  
"Togepi, are you all right?" Misty asked her little 'baby.'  
"Togeprrii," she cooed triumphantly from excitement of winning her first battle.  
Ash looked at the weak Pikachu he was holding in his arms. "We better get to a pokémon center soon," he suggested as Brock retrieved all the fainted pokémon.  
"Marowak," a weak voice called.  
The three turned around and saw the injured pokémon leaning on its bone club.  
"My duty is done," it sighed. Slowly it began to fade away.   
"I can finally rest," it said as it finally vanished.  
It was Dr. Eve who finally broke the silence. "This is all very confusing," she said as she walked to the opening.  
"I'll say," Misty agreed. "Ash, how did you do that?"  
"Honestly," Ash shrugged. "I don't know."

Butch and Cassidy were walking down the halls of Team Rocket's headquarters when Scott and Mary came in while carrying Jeff.  
"Well," Butch said to Cassidy, "look what the cat dragged in."  
"Not now," Scott tonelessly replied. "We have to get Jeff to the infirmary."  
"What happened to you three?" Cassidy asked. "Tried to fight a pokémon match without pokémon again."  
Mary glared at her. "This kid was using attacks no one has ever seen before," she snapped. "Besides, I heard one Sandslash took care of all your pokémon."  
Cassidy gritted her teeth in anger as Butch held her back.  
"Please, ladies," Scott told the girls, "we have better things to do than watch a cat fight."  
"Yeah," Butch said to his partner. "We have to go see Shane now."  
"Fine then," Cassidy replied. She turned to Mary. "I'll see you later."  
"I look forward to it," she replied as the two dragged Jeff to the infirmary.

"You shouldn't over-battle your pokémon like that," Nurse Joy chided the four trainers. "They all will have to remain here for three days."  
"Yes, ma'am," Brock sighed as he gazed at the nurse. "In the meantime, how about we go out for dinner?"  
"Young man," Nurse Joy replied as she raised her voice, "I would never date someone who mistreated his pokémon as much as you."  
She turned to walk back into the ward where their pokémon were resting.  
"But…" Brock started.  
"Give it up, Brock," Misty told the older trainer. "I doubt she would believe you."  
"Prii," Togepi laughed.  
"I hope Scyther wasn't hurt too badly," Tracey said as they walked over to the couch in the lobby. "He is getting older now."  
"Don't worry, Trace," Ash replied. "He's too determine to let a little thing like this keep him down."  
"I'm thirsty," Misty said as they passed a drink machine. "What about you, Ash?"  
"No, I'm fine," he replied.  
Brock leaned over and whispered something in his ear.  
"Oh," Ash said as Brock shook his head. "Now that you mention it, I am kinda thirsty."  
_You think he know better by now, _Misty sighed.  
When Brock and Tracey where out of sight, Misty turned to Ash. "Care to explain all that?"  
"I don't think I can," Ash replied. "After that Marowak's flash attack, I dreamed that I was in the past. I was there for about a month and met Anna."  
"And who is Anna?" Misty asked with a jealous tone in her voice.  
Catching this, Ash replied, "She was a very pretty girl. Too bad she was one of my ancestors."  
Misty was about to pull out her mallet, when Ash quickly added. "She taught me a little about being Destiny."  
Misty calmed down a bit. "Is that how Togepi used those new attacks?"  
"Yes," he answered. "Who knows, I may get her to evolve."  
"Please, don't," Misty pleaded. "She's still just a baby."  
Ash gave her a funny look. "Must be that mother stuff Team Rocket was talking about."  
"Why you," Misty replied as she brought her mallet down on Ash's head.

"Boss?" Butch asked as he stuck his head into Shane's office.  
"Butch, Cassidy, please come in," Shane replied.  
When the two entered the office, they were surprised that it was almost empty. Giovanni had kept souvenirs of his pokémon journey on shelves in his office, and the other Rocket Brothers were known for filling their rooms with decorations and furniture. Shane was different from the others. His office was only furnished with a simple desk and some chairs. The only thing that decorated the room was the large window behind the desk.  
"Have a seat," he instructed them as he turned away from the window and sat at his desk.  
Butch and Cassidy complied and waited for what was coming next.  
"I assume you've seen or heard about Scott's team," he told them.  
The both nodded. "Did you also know that it was caused by Ash Ketchum?"  
"The twerp?" Cassidy replied.  
"The same," Shane said. "He has been a thorn in the side of Team Rocket ever since the Viridian Pokémon Center Incident."  
Shane leaned on his desk as he continued. "My father tried to eliminate him as a trainer. I, however have no such conventions."  
Butch and Cassidy did not liking the sound of this. They knew Shane was a decent trainer, not quite the same level as his father, but he rarely battled. He preferred settling differences by using pokémon to attack the trainer.  
"The Pokémon League Competition is coming up in two months," he told them. "That will be Ketchum's final battle, and you two while be the first wave."  
"Yes, sir," they both replied.


	9. Default Chapter Title

Pokémon: Masters  
Chapter Nine – Let the Match Begin

Giovanni leaned back in the chair he acquired for his cell. His 'cell' had been moved to a more isolated section of the prison where he was watched by easily persuaded guards. He had almost as much luxury here as he did at TRHQ.  
He turned on the television to the Pokémon League Competition.  
"This had been a major upset within the novice competition," the first reporter said. "Four rather unknown trainers have made into the semifinals."  
"I wouldn't say they were unknown," the second reporter replied. "Richie Sparks and Gary Oak are third time returning challengers, and Ash Ketchum is the Orange League Champion. The fourth competitor, Rob Rocket, is the wild card in mix."  
"Isn't he the son of the former Viridian Gym Leader?"  
Giovanni switched off the television. He was proud that one of his sons was a true pokémon trainer even though he preferred to remain out of Team Rocket business.  
"Better get an update from Shane," he noted to himself as he laid down on his king size bed.

"I can't believe we made it this far," Ash told Richie over lunch.  
"Me neither," his friend replied as he took a bite out of his cheeseburger. "I thought that the last round would be the end."  
"Hey, losers," a voice called from across the diner.  
"Great," Ash rolled his eyes. "Hi, Gary."  
Gary joined the two trainers at their table. "I thought I should come and meet the competition," he smirked.  
"Then how about I join in," a new voice added.  
The three turned to the newcomer. He, at the age of fifteen, was a little older than the other trainers were. He kept his black hair cut short unlike Ash.  
"My name is Rob," he greeted the three trainers.  
"Nice to meet you," Richie said as he shook Rob's hand.  
Gary also greet Rob but in a less friendly way. Ash, however, remained silent.  
"What's with you?" Richie whispered to Ash while Gary and Rob began to talk about their pokémon journeys.  
"I don't like that guy," Ash replied. "I especially don't like his family."  
"So Ash," Rob cut in, "I see we are the next match tomorrow."  
"I guess," Ash shrugged.  
Ash looked down at his watch looking for a reason to leave.  
"Five o'clock," he sighed thankfully. "I have to meet a friend at 5:30, so I better leave."  
"Smell ya later, loser," Gary called as Ash left.

"Meowth, it's good to be back in civilization," Meowth sighed as the trio walked to the Pokémon Center.  
"Quit gripping," Jessie hissed at the pokémon. "It's been less than three months, and we already have four badges."  
"Oo," James said as he looked at the crowd. "There's Brock."  
They walked over the boy as he was being rejected once again.  
"Tough break," Meowth laughed. "You almost had that one."  
"Yeah," Brock sighed.  
"Cut it out!" Jessie yelled as she whacked the two with her fan.  
"Um, Jess," James said to the red-head, "I think they're out cold."  
"We'll see about that," Jessie replied as she pulled out a loudspeaker.  
"GET UP!" she yelled with it set to its highest volume.  
Brock and Meowth jumped up screaming in pain.  
"Now come on," she told the others.  
"I see time has not improved her," Brock sighed.  
"No," Meowth agreed, "but at least she's a better cook now."

"May I help you," Nurse Joy asked James.  
"Are there any rooms available?" he asked.  
"Sorry," she replied, "but all the rooms and couches are already taken."  
He turned to Brock.  
"I don't think Ash and Misty would mind you three staying with us," he told them.  
"Thanks," James replied. "We'll just leave our pokémon here for the night."

"Why happened?" Shane demanded from the two cowering Rockets before him.  
"Fifteen Officer Jennies threw us out," Butch replied.  
Shane sighed. "You are becoming just like Team Loser."  
Cassidy was offended by being compared to Jessie and James but was too frightened by Shane to respond.  
"Too bad Scott and his team are still out of commission," Shane added. "You two are all we have available."  
"What about your brother?" Butch asked.  
"He said he wanted to win the tournament without cheating," Shane replied. "Such absurd notations."  
"Yeah," the two agreed.  
"But that is his choice," Shane continued. "I guess I should let him deal with Ketchum."

"Move over," Misty said as she pushed Brock off the couch.  
"Hey," he replied as he landed on the floor. "When did this become couple's night?"  
Both of the couples blushed while their pokémon laughed.  
"Maybe we should stay at the Pokémon Center," Meowth suggested to Pikachu and Togepi."  
"Pikachu," Ash called to his pokémon. "Dinner time."  
"Pikapi!"  
He ran to his trainer who was waiting with a bottle of ketchup. Pikachu grabbed the bottle and began drinking the contents.  
"Slow down," Ash told him.  
"Here you go, Togepi," Misty said as she picked up the little egg.  
"Ash," James said as he took a bite out of a sandwich, "we heard something about you battling with Togepi."  
"Um, from where?" he asked.  
"We ran into some guys from Team Rocket," Jessie replied. "They told us what you did to Scott's team."  
"Well," Misty said as she handed Togepi some food, "he's not going to battle with her for a long time."  
Ash sighed. For the past month, he tried to convince Misty that Togepi should start training. When Togepi started crying after being hurt by Squirtle, Misty called off training.  
"You two sound like a married couple," James laughed.  
"Well, they practically are," Jessie commented.  
"Will everybody please cut out the married jokes," Ash blushed. "They're starting to get annoying."

"And welcome to the first of the semifinal matches," the announcer said over the speaker.  
"The red trainer is Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town," he continued. The crowd cheered wildly as he entered the stadium.  
"And the green trainer is Rob Rocket from Viridian City." Rob, however, received several boos from the crowd since most knew that his father was the leader of Team Rocket.

Giovanni leaned closer to his television. After over 10 years, another Rocket-Ketchum fight was on the air. He hoped the outcome of this match would be better than the others.

"Red lost the coin toss," the field judge called. "His pokémon will enter first. This is a 6-on-6 match, no time limit."  
Ash turned his hat around and chose a pokéball.  
"Squirtle, I choose you," he cried.  
Rob looked at the turtle standing in the arena.  
"A water type," he smirked. "If I was my father, you might have beaten me."  
He pulled a pokéball out of his coat pocket. "Voltorb, go!"  
"Squirtle, stay away from that thing," Ash called as he thought up a strategy.  
_If Squirtle gets too close the Voltorb will self-destruct,_ he thought, _but if he uses his water gun, it can electrocute him._  
"We got to take him done in one swipe," Ash yelled at his pokémon. "Hydro pump!"  
"Voltorb, thunderbolt," Rob replied.  
As the stream of water from Squirtle hit the Voltorb, its electrical attack traveled to the turtle. The result was a double KO.  
"Both pokémon are out," the judge called.  
"Squirtle, return," Ash said as he recalled his fallen pokémon. "Go, Bulbasaur."  
"You should really evolve your pokémon," Rob jeered at his opponent. "Arcanine, take care of that pest."  
"Bulbasaur, use solar beam," Ash called hoping the advanced attack would take care of the fire pokémon.  
"Arcanine, fire spin," Rob commanded his pokémon. Once again, the result of these attacks was another double KO.  
"This is amazing folks," the announcer said over the speaker. "Never before has there been two double knock out in the same match. This match may be in the history books."  
Ash gritted his teeth. He only had four pokémon left.  
"The red trainer must throw in the next pokémon," the judge informed them.  
Ash nodded. "Snorlax, I choose you."  
"A Snorlax?" Rob question as the massive pokémon appeared. "This is going to be the most active fight in league history."  
Rob called in a Gloom.  
"Stun spore, now," he commanded.  
When the clouded of dust covered the field, Snorlax twitched its ear. He was annoyed by the dust since it prevented him from napping, but it did not paralyze him.  
"Snorlax, body slam," Ash called.  
The crowd watched in amazement as the giant pokémon walked through the cloud of stun spores unaffected.  
"Gloom, try…" Rob began as Snorlax collapsed on his Gloom.  
When Snorlax sat up, the flatten Gloom remained still.  
"Gloom is out," the judge called.  
"Yeah, three down, three to go," Ash shouted.  
Rob glared at the other trainer. "This isn't over yet, Ketchum."  
He pulled out his fourth pokéball.  
"Gengar, go!"  
The ghost pokémon greeted his opponent with a hypnosis attack.  
"Snorlax," Ash cried from the trainer's box, "wake up!"  
"Dream eater," Rob called to his pokémon.  
"Gen," it replied.  
Snorlax began to toss and turn from the nightmares the ghost was creating.  
"Snorlax is out," the judge called when Snorlax remained asleep for 10 minutes.

"Now, both trainers have only three pokémon left," the commentator announced over the speakers. "What will be Ash's next choice to go against that Gengar?"  
"You can do it, Ash!" Misty shouted above the crowd.

To be continued…


	10. Default Chapter Title

Pokémon: Masters  
Chapter Ten – Good-bye Enemy, Hello Friend

"Now, both trainers have only three pokémon left," the commentator announced over the speakers. "What will be Ash's next choice to go against that Gengar?"  
"You can do it, Ash!" Misty shouted above the crowd.

Ash gritted his teeth as he chose his next pokémon.  
"Charizard, I choose you," he shouted as he tossed in the pokéball.  
Rob smirked. "Gengar, Night Shade."  
Charizard quickly dodged the ghost's attack by flying in the air and countered with his fire-spin attack.  
When the flames down, Gengar stood dazed but willing to fight.  
"All right, Gengar, let's use confusion," Rob commanded.  
The attack managed to hit Charizard, forcing him to ground.  
"Charizard, fire blast!" Ash shouted.  
Unfortunately, the confused dragon missed his opponent with its blast.  
"Charizard," Ash cried while the ghost made several attacks on the helpless pokémon.  
He lowered his head not wanting to see Charizard lose to the ghost. After a moment, he closed his eyes and raised his head back up. His eye lids quickly opened, revealing his now gold eyes.  
"Charizard, eruption!" he shouted.  
Charizard's tail began to grow as the pokémon used this new technique. Soon it was back on its feet and ready to battle.  
"Now, try fire blast again," Ash commanded.  
This time the attack struck the gengar. When it did not get back up, the judge called in favor of Charizard.  
"Gengar, return," Rob said as he switched pokémon. "Go, Nidoking."  
When the new pokémon entered the field, Charizard wasted no time in greeting it with fire spine. This time it took down the opponent because he was still feeling the effects of the eruption technique.  
"I can't lose this," Rob muttered under his breath.   
"Hey, Ketchum," he called out to the opponent. "See if you can beat this."  
He tossed in his last resort.  
"Quagsire," it greeted.  
"What's that?" Ash said as he pulled out Dexter.  
"Quagsire," it replied. "A recently discovered pokémon. There is no data available."  
"That's some help," Ash replied as he put Dexter away. "Charizard, try a seismic slam."  
Charizard flew over to grab the strange looking pokémon but received a hydro pump. This attack was the final act needed to bring down the dragon.  
"Good job, Charizard," Ash said as he recalled the pokémon.  
"So it's a water-type," Ash commented as he thought which of his two remaining pokémon to use. "Pikachu, I choose you."  
"Pika!" he shouted as he jumped into the arena.  
"All right, thunderbolt should work," Ash shouted.  
When Pikachu released the electricity at the pokémon, Rob smirked. After the light died down, Quagsire was still standing.  
"What?" Ash murmured. "But it's a water-type, and Pikachu didn't even phase it."  
"My turn," Rob called. "Quagsire, earthquake."  
"It's also a ground-type," Ash whispered as he watched his best friend taken out by the powerful ground attack.  
"Pikachu!" he shouted as he ran to pick up his friend.  
"Pikachu is out," the judge unfeeling called. "Please return to the trainer's box and choose your next pokémon."  
After Ash carried Pikachu to his box, he pulled out his final pokémon.  
"Jigglypuff!" she cried as she appeared with her "mike."  
Rob stared at the pokémon. He soon broke out laughing.  
"A jigglypuff," he laughed. "This should be easy."  
"Jigglypuff, sing!" Ash quickly commanded.  
The pokémon gladly began sing her lullaby. Ash watched as most of the heads in the lower rows started bobbing up and down. The quagsire was also falling asleep along with its trainer. Fortunately, the pokémon fell asleep before the judge.  
"Quagsire, out," he yawned. "Match to the red trainer."  
"I won!" Ash shouted to the sleeping crowd.  
"Jiggly," his pokémon hissed when she noticed her audience was asleep. She pulled the top off her "mike" and demonstrated her drawing skills on both her opponent and its trainer.

"What a match, Ash," Misty yawned when she met up with him at the Pokémon Center.  
"I still need to teach Jigglypuff how to focus that attack," he sighed as he handed Nurse Joy his pokémon.  
"Give it time," she replied. "Look how long it took you to get control over Charizard. By the way, nice new technique."  
"Huh?" Ash absently asked.  
"That eruption technique that Charizard used," she restated. "I've never knew about that one."  
Ash remembered the event and gave a soft blush. "I wonder if creating new attacks and skills during a match is cheating?" he asked her.  
She gave him a puzzled look until Rob Rocket walked over to him.  
"Good match," he greet as he offered his hand to Ash.  
"What?" Ash blankly asked as he stared at the Rocket.  
Rob sighed. "I'm not like the rest of my family," he replied. "I know we've had our differences, but at least let's act like professional trainers."  
Ash glared at him. "Do you have any idea what your father has done?" he pointedly asked.  
"I better go," Misty said seeing how this was about to go.  
"No wait," Rob told her. "Can we talk in private?"  
Misty looked at Ash and nodded. "All right," he whined as Rob led them to a secluded section of the Pokémon Center.  
"I first want to apologize for my father," Rob told the couple. "I can't undo what he has done, but I can at least see to it that it does not happen again."  
"How?" Ash demanded.  
"I can get Team Rocket off your backs," he replied. "That won't be too difficult since I can say it would be a waste of man power."  
"Is that all?" Ash asked.  
"What else can I do?" Rob replied. "My father is in jail, and Shane, while more heartless, is exactly that heartless. No emotions, good or bad, whatsoever.  
Ash eyed the boy and finally replied, "It's a start."  
Rob looked at Ash who was now offering his hand. Rob smile and gladly shook it.  
"I hope to battle you again, Ash," Rob at last spoke. "Your Charizard is amazing."  
"So is that Quagsire," Ash added. "A ground and water-type pokémon. That could be very useful to throw off opponents."  
"Nothing like that Jigglypuff," Rob replied. "I think almost the entire stadium was asleep."  
"Well," Ash blushed, "I do need to teach it how to focus on just one opponent."  
Misty left the two boys to discuss the finer points of pokémon battles. _At least we won't have to worry about Team Rocket,_ she thought as she went back to their cottage.

"So, Rob," Ash said as the two walked back from the Pokémon Center, "what are you going to do now?"  
"I plan to stick around until the ending ceremony," he answered, "then it's back to TR Headquarters."  
"What is it like?" Ash asked him. "To run Team Rocket and all?"  
"To tell you the truth," Rob replied, "I prefer being a trainer. Shane really runs the show. I just get saddled with the paperwork."  
"Paperwork?" Ash questioned.  
"Who do you think keeps track of the various business accounts," Rob answered. "What I mostly take care of is the legal end of things since my brothers wanted me to remain eligible to be trainer."  
"You mean there's more to TR than pokémon poaching?"  
"Yes, much more," Rob replied. "We own several majors businesses. It's much more profitable than stealing pokémon."  
As the two new friends entered the cottage, they were greeted by the screams of three other trainers.  
"What's he doing here?" Jessie demanded.  
"Relax," Ash said as he tried to calm his nerves. "He's a friend."  
"But dat's Rob, the second Rocket Brother," Meowth shouted.  
"You don't have to yell in my ear," James shouted at the cat.  
"I think we better leave those three alone," Ash whispered to Rob.  
"Are they always like this?" Rob asked as the two went into the kitchen.  
"Always," Ash answered.  
Misty, Brock, and Tracey joined the two in the kitchen.  
"Hi, I'm Tracey," the pokémon watcher greeted.  
"I'm Rob," the boy replied.  
"I heard about that pokémon of yours," Tracey continued. "Mind if I take a sketch of it?"  
Rob looked over at Ash and Misty wonder if this guy was for real.  
"Ah, sure," he reluctantly replied. "Just wait until I pick it tomorrow."  
"Okay," Tracey said as he mistakenly walked into the middle of the former Rockets' fight.  
"Out of my way, twerp," Jessie yelled at the poor boy.  
"Take dat," Meowth said as he made a swipe at Tracey.  
"I guess some things never change," Brock sighed.  
"I don't know," Ash said as he looked at his girlfriend and his new friend. "I'm beginning to believe that change is a good thing."

----------------------------

Author's Note:  
First, Sorry about taking so long to write this part, but I ran into a bad case of writer's block. Also, Quagsire and Eruption are from Pokémon GS. For more info go to [www.totallygs.com][1].  
Second, I just started the prequel to my Destiny series, "Generations." It's about the pokémon journey of Michael Ketchum up to the prologue of "Destiny." That will be the final part I write in this series. So, once "Masters" and "Generations" are done, so is the series.

Jaxxon

   [1]: http://www.totallygs.com/



	11. Default Chapter Title

Pokémon: Masters  
Chapter 11 – Adventures in Poke-sitting

"See ya later, Rob," Ash told his friend.  
"Good-bye, Ash," Rob replied as he started for the path to Viridian City. "I'll call you once I talk to Shane and the others."  
As Rob walked out of sight, Ash headed back to the Pokémon Center.  
"Hey, Nurse Joy," he greeted the young woman behind the counter, "have my friends got here yet?"  
"Yes, Ash," she cordially replied. "I think they are in the nursery."  
"Thanks," he said as he walked to the nursery. There he saw Brock and Pikachu playing with a baby Pichu.  
"Ain't he cute," Brock commented to Pikachu.  
"Pi pikachu (Yeah, but it's a girl)" the pokémon replied.  
"Oh," Brock said as he picked up the baby.  
"Hey, guys," Ash said as he walked further into the room.  
"Morning, Ash," Brock greeted. "These babies sure are cute."  
"I sure like this one," Misty said as she joined the two boys. She was caring a weird looking pokémon in her arms.  
"What is it?" Ash asked.  
"She's a Smoochum," Misty answered. "She is the daughter of the Jinx in critical care."  
Ash looked over at Tracey who was trying to draw Togepi, an Iglybuff, and an Cleffa chasing each other.  
"Hold still, will ya?" he complained.  
"Poor, Tracey," Brock sighed. "Getting babies to stay still is like getting Psyduck to use the right attacks."  
"Yeah," Ash snickered.  
"Why you…" Misty huffed as she punched the two boys.  
"Come on, Misty," Ash groaned. "Psyduck is a pretty lame pokémon."  
"Yes," Misty snapped, "but he still is mine!"  
"What's all the noise?" Nurse Joy asked.  
"Just a minor disagreement," Misty answered.  
"Well, keep it down," Nurse Joy replied. "This is a nursery, after all."  
"Yes, ma'am," Brock replied. "How about we discuss pediatric pokémon care, say, over dinner?"  
"How about you just keep an eye on these pokémon," Nurse Joy answered. "I'm very busy with the ones in critical care and could use the help."  
"Sure thing," Misty said with a huge smile on her face. "I just love babies."  
"But I wanted to see Richie and Gary's match," Ash complained as the nurse left.  
"Go on then," Misty replied. "We can handle things here."  
"But," Ash whispered in her ear, "I thought that maybe afterwards we could have lunch together."  
Misty's eyes brightened at the idea of a date with Ash.  
"How about I join you after the match," she suggested. "I'm sure Tracey and Brock could handle things for a little while."  
"No prob," Brock agreed. "After all, I want to be a pokémon breeder, and Tracey is a pokémon watcher. How difficult could handling four babies be?"  
"Five," Misty corrected. "I was going to leave Togepi with you too."  
"Five, then," Brock repeated. "What can five babies do?"  
"A little help here," Tracey cried to his friends.  
They turned and saw he had been tied up. Togepi and the other babies dancing around their baby-sitter while laughing Indian war cries.  
"Should we?" Misty questioned.  
"I think so," Ash answered seeing that they had started piling wood around him and Pichu was holding a box of matches.

"And the Pikachu is down," the announcer said through the loudspeaker. "Gary wins the match and proceeds to the final competition tomorrow night."  
"So, I have to face Gary," Ash said as he ran to join Richie. "That should be an interesting match."  
Richie was already heading to the Pokémon Center when Ash caught up with him.  
"That was a good match," Ash commented as the two headed to the center. "If Sparky had just a little more health, you would have won that match."  
"We did our best," Richie replied. "That's all I can ask for from my pokémon."  
When the two friends arrived at the pokémon center, Richie handed over his pokéballs to Nurse Joy.  
"What you up to now?" Richie asked.  
"Taking Misty out to lunch," Ash replied.  
"Way to go, Romeo," Richie smirked. "If only we all can be as lucking you."  
"Luck had nothing to do with it," Ash replied. "I think it was more like destiny."  
"Destiny, huh?" a voice called from the back of the lobby. "I think pity is more like it."  
"Hi, Misty," Richie greeted while both he and Ash sweatdropped.  
"How was the match?" Misty asked.  
"Gary won," Richie replied. He looked down at his watch.  
"I better go," he told the couple. "I have to pack."  
"See ya around," Ash called to his friend as Richie walked out the door.  
Ash turned back to Misty. "Ready?"  
"Just a moment," she told him. "I want to show you something."  
She led Ash back to the nursery. There, he saw Brock and Tracey watching the baby pokémon slipping in their cribs. Pikachu was lying on the floor taking a nap of his own.  
"And two more came in," Misty whispered. She pointed at the cribs on the far wall.  
"What are they?" Ash replied as he pulled out Dexter.  
"Elekid," it chirped, "the pre-evolved form of Electrabuzz. Magby, the pre-evolved form of Magmar."  
"Oh," Ash responded as he put Dexter away. "Not the cutest babies I've ever seen."  
"Quit being so insensitive," Misty hissed. "All babies are cute."  
"Quiet, you two," Brock whispered to them. "You might wake the bab…"  
Suddenly, Togepi's eyes opened. Tracey rushed over to it and quickly began to lull it back to sleep. He managed to get her back to sleep with out waking the others.  
"Now, go on your date," Brock told them. "We can take care of everything."  
"Okay," Ash and Misty replied.

"This is a great idea, Cassidy," Butch complimented his partner. "Why steal fully grown pokémon when we can get the babies."  
"Yeah," she agreed. "I knew you see it my way."  
The two Rockets had spent the last week trying to get back into Indigo Plateau since Officer Jenny had thrown them out. They heard that several pokémon babies were being kept at the Pokémon Center while their parents were in critical care.  
"And no brats to get in our way this time," Butch added as the two headed for the Pokémon Center.

In the nursery, Brock, Tracey, and Pikachu quietly sneaked out to the lobby to get some food from the snack machines.  
"Hope they stay asleep until Ash and Misty get back," Brock sighed. "I don't think I could handle all seven of them awake again."  
"At least they didn't use you as a piñata," Tracey complained. "I've never been so sore in my life."  
Pikachu could not help but laugh at the watcher. All morning, the pokémon babies had used him for entertainment while Misty and Brock just sat back and laughed.  
"Pi pika pi chu (Better you than me)," he laughed.  
"Very funny, Pikachu," Tracey replied as he walked over to the vending machines.  
"Excuse me," a blonde hair girl asked the pokémon watcher, "but can you tell me where the nursery is?"  
"Right over there," he answered pointing to the back of the lobby.  
"Thank you," she replied. "Now prepare for trouble, and make it double."  
"What?" a confused Tracey asked.  
"To infect the world with devastation,"  
"To blight all peoples within our nation," a boy from behind the girl continued.  
"Not you guys again," Brock sighed sighing who the couple were.  
"To denounce the goodness of truth and love," the girl continued.  
"To extend our wrath to the stars above," the boy added.  
"Pika kachu pichu (Don't you ever give up)," Pikachu complained.  
"Cassidy," the girl hissed.  
"Butch,"  
"Team Rocket circles the earth both day and night," Cassidy continued.  
"Surrender now or you will surely lose the fight," Butch concluded.  
"Shush," Nurse Joy whispered to the two Rockets. "You must be quiet. This is a Pokémon Center."  
"We know," Cassidy replied. "And we like to make a withdraw."  
"Hand over the babies now," Butch commanded the three humans.  
"Over my died body," Brock snapped.  
"That can be arranged," Cassidy replied. "Beedrill, Vileplume, take care of these brats."  
As the two pokémon appeared, Butch released his Drowzee and Machop.  
"Pikachu, thundershock," Brock told the pokémon while he released Geodude, Zubat, and Vulpix.  
"Nurse Joy, help me get the babies out of here," Tracey told the nurse as he ran to the nursery.  
Brock kept an eye on the two until they made it to the nursery door before turning his attention back to Team Rocket. Machop had already taken out Geodude, and Pikachu fainted from one of Beedrill poison stings. Luckily Vileplume was recalled after Vulpix used her flamethrower.  
"Butch, finish this one off," Cassidy told her partner as she recalled Beedrill. "I'll get the other two."  
"Sure," Butch smiled. "Drowzee, hypnosis."  
Brock dived behind a couch and managed to avoid the sleep waves. Unfortunately, the pokémon were not so lucky. When Brock raised his head up, Vulpix and Zubat were on the floor asleep.  
Butch laughed as he recalled his pokémon.  
"They're outside," Cassidy called as she ran out a side door.  
_Good, _Brock thought as he chased the male Rocket. _That means I can use Onix._  
When out side, Brock saw Tracey release Scyther to fight off Beedrill.  
"We don't have time for this," Cassidy complained. "Beedrill, toxic."  
When the glowing green slime hit the old bug pokémon, it fell to the ground and fainted.  
"Now hand over the babies," Cassidy commanded Tracey and Nurse Joy.  
"Never," Joy snapped back.  
"Onix, go," Brock cried as he released the giant rock snack.  
"Machop," Butch said to his fighting pokémon. "Cut this guy down to size."  
As the little pokémon leaped onto Onix's back, Machop gave it a Mega Punch, fracturing its skin. Onix let out a roar of pain as it began to buck to get the Machop off.  
"Onix!" Brock cried as he ran to comfort his injured pokémon.  
"Better recall him," Tracey advised his friend. "He might hurt someone."  
Cassidy and Butch gave a smug laugh as Brock recalled his final pokémon.  
"Now for the last time," Cassidy told them, "hand over those little brats!"  
"Stop this at once!" a voice from behind them shouted.  
Cassidy and Butch recognized the voice at once.  
"But boss," Cassidy whined, "we were winning this time."  
Brock, Tracey, and Nurse Joy looked behind the rockets and saw Rob with three other boys. The oldest seemed to be the one Team Rocket was talking to.  
"I have decided that pokémon theft is an unprofitable venture," the oldest boy told them. "Aside from the legal and moral matters, the cost for funding such activities greatly reduces any income brought in."  
"But Shane," Butch replied, "what are Cassidy and I going to do?"  
"That is still open to debate," Shane answered. "I would suggest you return to HQ while we decide upon that matter."  
"Yes, boss," Cassidy and Butch sighed.  
As the two Rockets left, Shane turned to Nurse Joy. "Have those two damaged the Pokémon Center?"  
"No, sir," she replied.  
"What about injured pokémon?" he asked.  
"I'll have to examine them first," she replied.  
"My brothers and I will wait until after you given your examination," Shane replied as he and the other boys walked into the Pokémon Center.  
"What just happened?" Tracey asked Brock as the carried the babies back to the nursery.  
"I don't know," Brock shrugged, "but I intend to find out."

After Togepi and the other babies were sleeping in their cribs, Brock and Tracey joined the four brothers in the lobby.  
"Hi, guys," Rob greeted. "I managed to get back quicker than I thought I would."  
"Excuse me," one the boys interrupted, "but I have to say that while I agree with not stealing other people's pokémon, I still want a piece of that Ketchum kid."  
"Quiet, Matt," Rob snapped at his younger brother.  
"I have to agree with Matt," Jake told his older brother. "Profit or not, Ketchum ruined our lives."  
"Ash did no such thing," Rob replied. "He was only defending himself."  
"Silence, all of you," Shane commanded his younger brothers. "I have a plan to handle Ketchum that should please all of you."  
"What is it?" Brock hazarded to ask.  
"Wait until Ketchum is here," Shane replied as Nurse Joy walked out from the operating room.  
"They all will recover in a few hours," she announced. "Except for Onix and Scyther."  
"What is the problem with those two?" Shane asked.  
"Scyther's exoskeleton was severely damaged from the toxins, and Onix's skin was also badly hurt," she sighed. "It will take a long time for them to recover."  
Shane turned to Rob and told him to go back to the limo. When he returned, he was carrying to large packages.  
"These are a new invention that Silph Co. has recently created," Shane told the nurse. "They will give the pokémon some protection while their wounds heal."  
"What are they?" Brock demanded.  
"Metal coats," Rob answered. "They'll act like a second skin to Onix and Scyther."  
"I place these on right away," Nurse Joy said as she took the packages to the operating room.  
"Hey, Brock, Tracey," Ash called from the entrance. "What's with the mess outside? Was there a battle or something?"  
Ash and Misty walked over to the crowd of people talking near Brock and Tracey.  
"Rob," Misty greeted. "Back so soon?"  
"Yeah," he answered, "and I brought my brothers with me."  
Shane stepped up to the younger boy.  
"It is a pleasure to finally meet you, Mr. Ketchum," he greeted the boy.  
"Please, call me Ash," he replied.  
Shane looked back at Jake and Matt who could barely contain their contempt for the boy.  
"My brother has informed me of deal you made with him," Shane continued. "I am afraid I must make some changes."  
"Oh?" Ash replied. He did not like how this was going.  
"I wish to see to test your training skills against my own," Shane told the boy. "Sometime in the future, I will like to hold a match against you."  
"What do I get if I win?" Ash asked.  
"Nothing," Shane replied. "This is simply a battle between two trainers. Win or lose, you will be left alone by Team Rocket."  
"What about us?" Jake interrupted.  
"Oh," Shane replied, "I almost forgot. You will have to battle all four of us."  
"All four?" Ash gulped.  
"I agree with that," Rob commented.  
"Me too," Matt added.  
Everyone looked at Jake.  
"Very well," he conceded.  
"Good," Shane said as he turned to Ash. "I will call you when we are ready."  
"I look forward to it," Ash replied.  
"We must go now," Shane told his younger brothers. "Until we meet again."  
"Until then," Ash said as the four brothers walked out of the Pokémon Center.

Ash and Misty peeked into the nursery to check on the babies. They were awake and playing with Bulbasaur, Squirtle, and Jigglypuff.  
"Aren't they so precious," Misty sighed as they walked over to the couches.  
Ash looked up at the clock on the wall.  
"It's getting late," he said as he pulled out his pokéballs to retrieve his pokémon.  
"Get some rest," Misty told him. "You have a big day tomorrow."  
"Yeah," he replied as he walked into the nursery and recalled his pokémon. "Tomorrow, I become a real Pokémon Master!"


	12. Default Chapter Title

Ages:

Matt Rocket: 10  
Jake Rocket: 13  
Ash/Misty/Gary: 14  
Tracey: 15  
Brock/Rob Rocket: 16  
Jessie/James/Shane Rocket: 21

* * *

Pokémon: Masters  
Chapter 12 – Generation Gap

"You did what?!" an enraged inmate shouted into the video phone.  
"Quiet, Giovanni," a guard snapped at him, "or it's back to your cell."  
"Yes, sir," the former leader of Team Rocket snarled. He could not decide whom he was angrier at. The guard or his son.  
"I said, father," Shane emotionlessly replied, "I feel that your vindictive against this Ash Ketchum is bad for business."  
"Some things are more important than business," Giovanni snapped at his son. "Revenge is very high on that list."  
"I'm sorry," Shane told his father, "but we have wasted too many resources on this endeavor."  
"And the dismantling of Team Rocket?" Giovanni demanded.  
"Again, pokémon theft is such a meager source of income," Shane answered. "Silph Co. makes more in a quarter than Team Rocket has made in the past three years."  
Giovanni glared at his oldest son. _How dare he betray me like this,_ he thought as he watched his organization crumble before his eyes.  
"Shane, I am very disappointed in you," Giovanni informed his son. "Once I am free of this wretched place, I will have to see how much damage you have done to my empire."  
"You know that is impossible," Shane told his father. "I doubt you will be able to do much of anything in forty years."  
Before Giovanni would reply, Shane cut off the transmission.  
_Not if I get out of here first,_ Giovanni thought as the guard led him back to his cell.

"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the final round of the Indigo League Championships," the loudspeakers announced. "This will be a six pokémon match between Gary Oak of Pallet Town and Ash Ketchum, also of Pallet Town."  
Misty, Brock, Tracey, Jessie, and James looked at the huge crowd that filled the stadium. Tracey pointed out that most of Pallet was here.  
"I think I see May Oak sitting with her grandfather," he said pointing to two figures on the lower level.  
"There's Ash's mom," Brock said as he waved to her.  
"You know, Jessie," James spoke as he scanned the crowd. "I think I saw a few people from Team Rocket here."  
"Shut up, nit-whit," Jessie shouted as she slapped him with her fan.  
"Will you both shut up," Misty shouted at the former Rockets. "The match is about to start."  
"Oh, sorry _Mrs. Ketchum_," James laughed. "I guess you wanted to watch the twerp lose."  
"Shows what you know," Misty snapped. "Ash has this one in the bag."  
"Why do you say that?" Jessie asked.  
"He's my boyfriend," she replied with a smirk. "And I don't date losers."

"You ready, Pikachu?" Ash asked his pokémon.  
*Yeah* Pikachu replied.  
"Okay," Ash said as he took a breath to calm his nerves, "let's do this."  
Ash and Pikachu walked into the arena. Ash forced himself not to look up at the crowd. He knew it would be filled with faces from Pallet. He really did not want to know if which were cheering for him and which were cheering for Gary.  
"Are you ready, loser?" Gary called from his side of the arena.  
"Yeah," Ash snapped trying to keep confident.  
"Since Gary lost the coin toss earlier," the field judged announced, "he must select the first pokémon."  
"Piece of cake," Gary replied as he pulled out a pokéball. "Arcanine, go!"  
As the wolf pokémon appeared, Ash chose his own pokémon.  
"Squirtle, I choose you," he cried as he tossed in the pokéball.  
"Arcanine, fire spin," Gary commanded.  
"Withdraw," Ash countered.  
As Arcanine's flames engulfed the shell, Ash waited for his opportunity. When the flames died down, Squirtle reappeared for his shell, a bit blackened but willing to fight.  
"Squirtle, bubblebeam," Ash commanded.  
"Arcanine, dodge it," Gary countered.  
Unfortunately, the large dog was not quick enough to avoid the beam. It collapsed on the ground, and the judge announced the point to Ash.  
"Fine then," Gary said as he gritted his teeth. "Exeggcutor, go!"  
"Squirtle, return," Ash said seeing he lost the elemental advantage. "Charizard, I choose you."  
"Exeggcutor, psychic," Gary ordered.  
"Charizard, fire blast!" Ash countered.  
The entire arena was covered with dust from the explosion of the two attacks. When it finally settle, Charizard was huffing from the strain, but Exeggcutor was burnt to a crisp.  
"Exeggcutor is unable to continue," the judge announced. "Victory to Charizard."  
"Grrr," Gary growled. He was down two, and Ash had not lost a single pokémon. "Nidoking, let's take of this pest!"  
"All right, Charizard," Ash shouted to his pokémon. "Two down and four to go, we can do this."  
Charizard nodded back to his trainer and glared at his opponent.  
"Nidoking, take down attack," Gary ordered.  
"Charizard, dragon rage!" Ash countered.  
Charizard's eyes turned bright red as the rage within boiled. As Nidoking approached him, he launched into the air. He circled around the pokémon, flaming from side until Nidoking managed a lucky shot at him. Charizard crashed into the side of the stadium.  
"Charizard, you okay?" Ash asked.  
Charizard shook his head and glared at Nidoking.  
*Big mistake* he told his opponent. *Ash, this guy is in the bag*  
"Go for it," Ash shouted back.  
"_Go for it_", Gary repeated. "What kind of attack is that?"  
*Fissure!* Charizard roared as he leapt into the air and crashed down on Nidoking.  
"Nidoking is out," the judge called. "Victory to Charizard."  
"I'm down three!" Gary shouted. "No more Mr. Nice Guy. Marowak, go!"  
"Charizard, you up for this?" Ash asked his pokémon.  
*No* Charizard replied. *But I want to*  
"Okay," Ash said. He eyed the Marowak at the other end of the arena.  
"Marowak, bone club," Gary ordered.  
"Charizard," Ash called to his pokémon, "combine fly and skull bash to take him down."  
Charizard attempt the maneuver that Ash describe but was knocked to the ground Marowak's bone club.  
"Now show this guy a real fissure," Gary called to his pokémon.  
Charizard saw it coming and managed to dodge the attack.  
"Charizard, try swift," Ash shouted.  
With perfect accuracy, Charizard made contact with Marowak. Marowak flinched from the sudden attack leaving Charizard an opening to use Mega Punch for the knock out.  
"Marowak is out," the judge called. "Victory to Charizard."

"Ash is doing it," Misty cheered. "He only has two more to go."  
"Mind turning down the volume," Brock complained. "You don't have to shout in my ear."  
"Shut up, Brock," Misty replied.

"Charizard, you sure you want to stay in?" Ash asked the dragon.  
*Consider this my apology for losing the last time here* Charizard replied. *Besides, I want to kick Gary's butt all over Indigo Plateau*  
"Fine," Ash replied. "Here's the next one."  
Gary had released Magneton.  
"Magneton, thunderbolt," Gary ordered.  
"Fire spin!" Ash counted remembering about Magneton's other classification, steel, which was week against fire attacks.  
Charizard took the hit but continued to engulf Magneton in the flame tunnel. When he finally stopped, Magneton fell to the ground.  
"Magneton is out," the judge announced. "Victory to Charizard."  
"This impossible!" Gary shouted. "How can one Charizard defeat four of my best pokémon?!"  
Gary had not planned on Ash using Charizard after what happened at the tournament three years ago. He mostly brought pokémon to take on Squirtle, Bulbasaur, and Pikachu.  
"Just one more, Charizard," Ash told his pokémon who was beginning to stagger. _I hope he makes it, _Ash thought.  
"You're my last hope," Gary said as he kissed his pokéball. "Venomoth, go!"  
"A bug?" Ash questioned. "Charizard, flamethrower."  
Charizard was relieved that it was merely a bug this time. With the elemental advantage, he thought it would be an easy score.  
"Venomoth, stun spore," Gary commanded.  
Venomoth managed to release the spores before Charizard's flames struck it. Gary dropped his head seeing his defeat, but Ash was more concerned about Charizard than his victory at the moment. The spores managed to reach him and finally fainted the dragon.  
"Venomoth and Charizard are both eliminated," the judge announced seeing both pokémon were not moving. "Round to Ash Ketchum.."  
Throughout the stadium, the crowd was cheering on both Ash and Charizard. Ash was ignoring them at the moment and ran to his pokémon.  
"We did it," Ash congratulated him.  
"Char," he weakly replied.  
"Let's get you to the Pokémon Center," Ash said as he pulled out Charizard's pokéball.

"Hey, Ash!" Misty called to him at the Pokémon Center. "Why did you disappear after the match?"  
"Charizard needed to get to the Pokémon Center," Ash replied. "What kind of Pokémon Master would I be if I didn't after what he did?"  
"Ash, you gotta come out here," Brock said from the doorway.  
Ash looked past Brock and saw the crowd of reporters.  
"How does it feel to win the tournament?" one asked.  
"Great," Ash replied.  
"Is it true your father also won the tournament?"  
"Yes," Ash answered.  
"Do you have a girlfriend?"  
"Yes, he does," Misty told the reports.  
"Will you please leave the Pokémon Center!" Nurse Joy shouted at the reporters. "I have injured pokémon that need their rest."  
Ash let out a sigh of relief when the reporters left but did not notice that someone from the crowd remained.  
"Ash Ketchum?" the man asked.  
"Yes," he replied. "Please, no more reporters."  
The man laughed. "You take a lot after your father," he told the boy.  
"You know my dad?" Ash asked him. The man reminded him of Dracula and could not figure out how his father knew him.  
"Sure," the man answered. "I was junior trainer when he ran the Viridian Gym."  
"Ash, I didn't know your dad ran a gym," Misty commented.  
"It was before he met Mom," he replied. "I didn't know his junior trainer though."  
"He fell out of touch when I got my job," the man told him. "Let me introduce myself. I'm Lance."  
"What?!" both Ash and Misty shouted. "Not the head of the Elite Four Lance!"  
"The one and the same," Lance laughed. "I came here to congratulate you."  
"Thank you, sir," Ash replied.  
"Don't call me sir," Lance told him. "You'll make feel as old as Agatha."  
"I heard that," an old woman from behind Lance commented.  
Lance jumped at the remark. "Where did you come from?"  
"I'm here to bring you two to the awards ceremony," Agatha replied. "You are holding it up."  
"We're coming," Lance said as he walked out of the Pokémon Center. "Come on, kid."  
"Don't call me **kid**," Ash shouted as he followed the Dragon Master.  
"Just like Michael," he laughed.

"It is with pleasure that I give you this Master Badge," Lance told Ash, Gary, and Richie. "You three have demonstrated the very beliefs of teamwork and determination that this League stands for."  
Ash looked down at his new badge.  
_That's for you, Dad_,he thought as a tear came to his eye.


	13. Default Chapter Title

Ages:

Matt Rocket: 10  
Jake Rocket: 13  
Ash/Misty/Gary: 14  
Tracey: 15  
Brock/Rob Rocket: 16  
Jessie/James/Shane Rocket: 21

* * *

Pokémon: Masters  
Chapter Thirteen – Reversing the Sands

Ash pulled his jacket tighter around his neck hoping to keep the rain off him, but he had other matters to deal with besides the rain.  
"Who are you?" he shouted into the night.  
"The finale," a voice replied.  
In the rain, Ash managed to make out a figure standing about ten feet in front of him. It seemed only a shadow but possessed two glowing red eyes. Before Ash could do another thing, the shadow fired a ball of black energy at him.

"NO!" Ash shouted as he jumped out of bed.  
He sat there panting as the rain beat against his window.  
"Ash, are you okay?" Brock asked, startled at being woken in the middle of the night.  
"Just a nightmare," Ash replied while he tried to calm himself. "Go back to sleep."  
"You sure you're all right?"  
"Yeah," Ash replied as he laid back down. "Good night, Brock."  
"Night, Ash," Brock said he drifted back to sleep.

"Morning, honey," Mrs. Ketchum greeted her son the next morning. "Did you sleep well?"  
Ash just groaned as he sat down at the table. Brock was already eating his breakfast, and Misty was in the shower.  
"Mr. Mime," Mimie said as he handed Ash a stack of pancakes.  
"Thanks," Ash replied as he started eating.  
"So, Ash," Brock said as Misty joined them, "what are you planning to do today?"  
"I'm not sure," he replied.  
"I have an idea. Why don't we have a picnic this afternoon?" Misty suggested.  
"That sounds great," Brock replied.  
"Actually, Brock," Misty said as Mimie gave her some pancakes, "I was hoping it would be just Ash and me."  
"Oh," Brock sighed, "and you are going to ask me to babysit Togepi and Pikachu, right?"  
"How did you know?"  
"Lucky guess," Brock replied. _I need to find me a woman._  
He looked over at Ash, who had considerably perked up since Misty came down. They were now making some plans for their picnic.  
_That's it,_ Brock thought as he helped Mimie with the dishes. _I really need one._  
"Ring, Ring, Ring, Phone Call, Phone Call," the videophone chimed.  
"I'll get it," Mrs. Ketchum said when she noticed Ash was too involved with Misty to notice the phone. "Hello?"  
"Ah, Mrs. Ketchum," Prof. Oak greeted. "Is Ash home?"  
"Yes, Professor," she cheerfully replied. "Ash, it's for you."  
When Ash finally dragged himself away from Misty, he asked Prof. Oak what he wanted.  
"Bill is going on a little pokémon hunt," he explained, "and he wanted to know if you would like to join him."  
"Sure, Professor," Ash happily replied. "I would love to go."  
"So much for our picnic," Misty sighed.  
"Don't worry, Misty," Brock told her. "There always be other days for one."

"So what type of pokémon are we looking for?" Ash asked Bill when they left Prof. Oak's lab.  
"The rarest type there is," he replied. "It's even more rare than Mew. I also think it's more powerful too, but no one has ever seen it."  
"Then how do you know it's real?" Misty asked.  
"There are many legends about it," he replied. "After all you and Ash have been through with legendary pokémon, I thought you would have more faith than that."  
"I guess you're right," Misty blushed. "Can you tell us anything about it?"  
"All the legends seem to suggest that it's a plant type," Bill replied. "Though one seemed very peculiar."  
"What was it?" Brock asked.  
"It said that it also 'reversed the sands,'" he answered. "I think that means it's also a ground-type, but I'm not sure. The text was a little hard to translate."  
"What did they call it?" Ash asked.  
"Depending on time period, Serebeii or Serebi," he replied.  
"And where are we going?" Misty asked.  
"A forest near Saffron is where the legends say it appears once every few centuries," Bill explained. "If I translated right, it should appear in the next few days."  
"That's a big 'if'," Brock commented.  
"It's worth a shot," Bill replied.  
Misty looked over at Ash. He had silent after Bill mentioned the name of the pokémon and its location.  
"Something wrong?" she asked.  
"I just have a bad feeling about this," he replied. "Something isn't right."  
This worried Misty. Normally, Ash would recklessly rush into danger without a second thought, sometimes without a first one either, and if he was concerned about something, it was usually very big.  
"Should we turn back?"  
"No," he replied. "I feel something wants us to go."  
Now she was really worried. Maybe it was another Destiny-thing. She looked at the amulet Ash had been wearing since his twelfth birthday and saw it was slightly glowing.

"Night, guys," Bill said as he went to sleep.  
"Night," Brock replied.  
Ash and Misty decided to stay up a little bit longer to look at the stars. Without a cloud, the night sky was filled with them.  
"Beautiful, aren't they," Misty sighed.  
"Not as much as you," Ash replied.  
Misty blushed at the comment and gave Ash a kiss on the cheek as a reward.  
"Look a shooting star," Misty said as a light streaked across the sky. "Let's make a wish."  
She closed her eyes and thought about what she wanted most in the world. When she opened her eyes a minute later, she saw Ash still had his closed.  
"What did you wish for?" Ash asked with his eyes still closed.  
"If I tell you," Misty replied, "it won't come true."  
"Oh," Ash said as he put his arm around her. "You think we should get some sleep soon?"  
"In a few minutes," she cooed as she enjoyed his arm around her. "Let's just stay like this for now."

"I'm warning, Giovanni," the guard snapped at the inmate. "Settle down, or it's the hole."  
"You dare to threaten me," Giovanni huffed. "I can have you in a hole, six feet deep!"  
"That's it," the guard snapped back as he grabbed the former kingpin by the arm. "It's solitary for you."  
_You'll regret this,_ he thought as the guard dragged him to another cellblock. _You and Ketchum._

"Good morning," Ash said as he woke Misty up.  
"Five more minutes," she groaned.  
"And you say I'm stubborn about getting out of bed," Ash remarked.  
"Just because you're my boyfriend," Misty replied as she rolled over, "doesn't mean I want knock you senseless."  
"You don't have to use your mallet," Brock laughed. "I think a kiss can do the same thing."  
Both Misty and Ash blushed at the comment, but it worked at getting Misty out of her sleeping bag. She then chased Brock around the campsite with her mallet.  
"Hold still," she shouted. "I promise this won't hurt… too much."  
"Yeah right," Brock replied as he dived into bushes. He did not notice that Misty did not follow him in.  
"Brock," she said as she put her mallet away, "I hope you realize that you are in poison ivy."  
"What?!" he screamed as he jumped out.  
"Here," Bill said as he tried to keep from laughing, "this potion will stop the itching."  
"Thanks," Brock replied as he took the bottle.  
While Brock sprayed himself with potion, Misty joined Ash by the campfire where he was eating breakfast.  
"How much further is it?" Misty asked.  
"About half a day's hike," Bill replied.  
"Well," Ash said as he put out the fire. "Let's get going."  
"Mind if I eat first?" Misty asked.  
"Sure," Ash laughed nervously. "Right after you eat."

"Hello, Father," Shane said to the man on the other end of the videophone.  
"Don't 'Hello, Father' me," he snapped at his oldest son. "I want you to do me a favor."  
"I've told you before," Shane replied. "I will not endanger my own enterprises for one of your schemes."  
"I built most of that myself, you ungrateful brat!" Giovanni snapped at him. "The least you can do is arrange an early parole."  
"And have you ruin everything I built," Shane emotionless responded. "I think not."  
"Then at least let me have the satisfaction that Ketchum is dead," he replied.  
"I have already told you that I plan to deal with Ketchum my own way," Shane told his father. "His death will prove more harm than usefulness."  
"Revenge is worth it!" Giovanni snapped back.  
"I see you still have much to deal with, Father," Shane replied. "You must learn that the best revenge is profit."  
"No, the best revenge is the last laugh," Giovanni corrected.  
"Then it would appear that I have both," Shane said as he cut the transmission.  
"I've got to get out of here," Giovanni snarled as the guard came to return him to cell.

"Let's split up," Bill said once they arrived in the forest.  
"Sure," Ash replied. "Brock can go with you, and Misty can go with me."  
"I think we should do it the other way around," Bill told him.  
"Why?"  
"I don't you and Misty will be doing much searching together," Bill replied.  
"Sorry," Ash told as he grabbed Misty's hand, "but I prefer it this way."  
"That's what I'm afraid of," Bill sighed as the couple ran off.

"Ash, it's getting late," Misty said, as the sun was about to set. "I think we should find Bill and Brock."  
"We're close," Ash replied. "I can feel it."  
"Pikapi?" Pikachu questioned.  
Misty looked at Ash and saw that the amulet was now acting like a flashlight.  
"Ash, the pendant," she commented.  
"I know," he replied without looking down at it. "We really close now."  
*What's going on?* Togepi asked as she woke up from her nap.  
*Ash is just getting carried away,* Pikachu replied.  
Misty looked around and saw that several flowers were beginning bloom.  
"Ash," she whispered, "the flowers."  
"He's here," he replied.  
"Who's here?" she asked.  
Suddenly, a bright flash of light blinded the two trainers. When his eyesight returned, Ash said, "Misty, you okay?"  
No one answered.  
"Misty?" he asked again.  
Still no one replied. He looked around and found that Pikachu and Togepi were missing too.  
"Misty!" he called hoping to find her.  
"Yeah, mister," a voice finally replied.  
He looked down and saw a six year old orange-headed girl with a Pichu and a pokémon egg.  
"Oh boy," Ash said when he realized who she was.


	14. Default Chapter Title

Pokémon: Masters  
Chapter Fourteen – A Hero Once More

"Misty?" Ash asked the little girl playing with Pichu.  
"Yes, sir?" she replied.  
"What happened?"  
"Uncle Mike, why have you shrunk?" she asked in turn.  
"Uncle Mike," he whispered to himself. "She must think I'm Dad."  
"Pichu," she said to the pokémon, "would you like to play?"  
"Pi," he replied.  
As the girl and pokémon began to chase each other, Ash picked up the egg and placed in his backpack. He had to find Bill and Brock.  
"Misty, we have to go," he told the girl.  
"Okay," she shrugged. "Where's Mom and Dad?"  
"Uh," he replied. "Actually I was going to take you to them."  
"Can we go out for ice cream?"  
"Sure," he answered as he took her hand.

Bill and Brock had managed to find a few Abras and Ghastlies but not a trace of Serebi. They were heading back to the camp when they saw the bright flash.  
"I wonder what that was," Brock commented.  
"Let's check it out," Bill said as he headed in the direction of light.  
As the got closer to the spot, Brock noted that several flowers had bloomed in the last few minutes.  
"Bill," a voice called. "Brock."  
"That's Ash," Brock said when he recognized the voice. "Over here!"  
Bill and Brock saw Ash come out behind some bushes.  
"Where's Misty?" Brock asked.  
"She doesn't like strangers," he weakly replied.  
"Huh?" Brock questioned.  
"Perhaps you should see for yourself," he replied. "Misty, come out. They're my friends."  
Brock watched as a little girl slipped out of the bushes and hid behind Ash's legs.  
"Why doesn't he have eyes, Uncle Mike?" she asked when she pointed to Brock.  
"It's a mystery," Ash replied. He looked up at his two older companions.  
"This is Misty?" Bill asked. He got on his knees and looked at the girl who shied away.  
"Make the bad man stop," she cried.  
"It's okay, Misty," he said as he picked her up. She smiled when she felt safe in his arms. "He won't hurt you."  
"This is amazing," Bill commented.  
"What exactly happened?" Brock asked.  
"I'm not sure," Ash replied as he sat down with Misty still in his arms. "Misty wanted to head back to camp, but I felt something pulling me on. She said something about flowers, and then a light blinded us. I found Misty, Pikachu, and Togepi like this."  
"Where's Pikachu and Togepi?" Brock asked not seeing them around.  
"Togepi is the egg in my backpack, and Pikachu is that Pichu over there," Ash replied pointing to the small pokémon in the bushes.  
"You mean," Bill said as he looked at Misty and Pichu, "they were all made younger?"  
"I guess 'reversing the sands' meant the ones in hourglasses," Brock commented. "Still, Misty said something about flowers?"  
"Yeah."  
"Bill said that Serebi was plant type," Brock continued. "Maybe it had something to do with this."  
"You be on to something," Bill agreed. "I think I read something about Serebeii being considered the herald of spring by the older cultures."  
**Actually,** a voice replied, **they called me the flower child.**  
The three males turned toward the voice and saw a little green fairy.  
**Let me introduce myself,** it continued. **I am Serebi, the Pokémon of Time.**  
He looked at Misty and frowned.  
**I do believe I've really made a mess of things this time,** it sighed.

It was late, and Tracey was the last one in the lab. Prof. Oak had already gone out for dinner, and Gary was off competing in the Orange League. Tracey was mostly putting the finishing touches on his report of Ampharos and Quagsire from the information he received from Rob at the League Competition. He hoped to see the pokémon when he went on a research trip next month.  
He was about to leave when he noticed a noise coming from another part of lab. Thinking that it might be a loose pokémon, he went to investigate. Finding nothing, he turned out the lights and left to find his own meal in Pallet Town.

****

It's so good to see you again, Ash, Serebi greeted as she floated closer to the trainer.  
"Have we meet before?" Ash questioned.  
**Oh, this must be when we meet for the first,** she replied. **You must forgive me about that. I sometimes get time periods confused. Anna found it every annoying.**  
"You mean Destiny?" Ash commented.  
**I find it easier to refer to them by their names,** Serebi laughed. **Otherwise, I get you all mixed up.**  
"There are more than two?" Bill asked. He was interested in the Destiny legends he had uncovered in his research. He wanted to ask Ash more about it, but he always refused to talk about it.  
**You have no idea how many timelines there are,** Serebi replied. **But that's another discussion for another time. I better fix the little mess I made first; then we'll talk.**  
She closed her eyes and began to glow. Everyone watched in amazement as Misty began to grow back to her fourteen year old self.  
"Where am I?" she asked a bit confused. "Last thing I remembered was that light, and now I'm in Ash's lap."  
She looked at Ash's face. "Not that I'm really complaining," she blushed.  
"Togepi," a muffled voice in Ash's backpack called.  
"Togepi, is that you?" Misty said as she jumped off Ash and opened his backpack. "Mommy's here."  
"Pikapi," Pikachu cheered as he leapt into Ash's now vacant lap.  
"Now care to explain what happened?" Ash asked the pokémon.  
**Just the temporal surge that occurs when I entered a time period,** Serebi replied. **It really messes up the ages of things at point zero.**  
"How come I wasn't affected?"  
**You're the Destiny in this time period,** Serebi replied. **You're immune to it, for the most part.**  
"What is it we have to talk about?" he asked.  
**Not here,** she told him. **There are others we have to talk to.**  
"Then where?"  
**More like, when,** she replied.  
Serebi slowly began to glow again and exploded in a burst of light. When her eyesight returned, Misty saw that Ash and Serebi were gone.  
"Not again," she sighed. "Maybe I should start dating people who won't constantly disappear on me."

"Where are we?" Ash asked Serebi when he saw his surrounding. He was in a white circle of light surrounded by darkness.  
**Where time is not,** Serebi replied. **I must get the others. Please don't leave the circle.**  
Serebi disappeared this time without the light show. It was not a long wait until she returned with someone in a forest green cloak. After both were appeared, Serebi vanished again.  
"It is good to see you again," a female voice greeted Ash.  
"Anna," Ash replied. "I thought you said you were finally going to rest now."  
"This is the last time we can meet," she told him. "But we must wait until the other one gets here."  
"And who is that?" Ash asked.  
"You," a voice from the darkness replied.  
Ash looked and saw a forty-year-old version of himself emerge with Serebi.

"I'm confused," Ash admitted when he saw himself.  
"You'll grow out of that," older Ash laughed. "But Misty will never admit to it."  
**We have more important things to discuss than your wife,** Serebi snapped at both Ashes. **Young Ash here is about to face HIM.**  
"Him?" the younger Ash asked. "Who is 'him'?"  
"HE is a monster I had to deal with in the beginning," Anna replied. "A pokémon of tremendous power."  
**Almost as much as Time itself,** Serebi continued. **Mew and I are the most powerful pokémon, and even combined, we couldn't stand up against HIM.**  
"Does he have a name?" younger Ash asked.  
"HE doesn't have one," older Ash replied. "HE simply calls himself by HIS host."  
"Host?"  
"He doesn't have a body," Anna answered. "He generally takes whatever human is available but sometimes searches for one."  
"And they are always human," older Ash continued. "Pokémon are not affected by his mind control."  
**We can't tell you too much about him,** Serebi interrupted. **Time is a risky thing to alter. Just informing you of it is dangerous.**  
"How am I going to defeat HIM?" Ash asked them.  
"I can't tell you that," older Ash replied. "But Serebi can do this."  
**This may sting a bit,** Serebi told Ash.  
"A bit," older Ash caustically repeated. "I was sore for a week."  
**Don't scare the boy, **Serebi snapped back as she shot younger Ash with a bolt of energy.  
"Ouch!" Ash screamed at the top of lungs.  
"Told ya," older Ash said to the pokémon.  
**Your full powers are now unlocked,** Serebi told young Ash while ignoring his older self. **I would suggest you practice before HE shows up.**  
"When will HE come?" Ash asked as he clinched his side in pain.  
**I can't be definite,** Serebi replied. **HE will find a body when you return. When HE challenges you, I don't know.**  
"Good-bye, Ash," Anna said as she hugged his neck. "The world needs you again."  
"I sometimes wish the world could just leave me alone," he sighed as he disappeared from the rest. _But I at least got to know that my wish from last night came true._

Ash soon found himself back among Misty, Brock, Bill, and Pikachu.  
"That was quicker than last time," Misty smirked. "And no sleeping bodies to deal with."  
"But this message isn't a pleasant," he replied. "I have to save the world again."  
"What else is new," Misty sighed. "And just when I thought things were getting boring."

When Tracey returned to the lab, he heard the noise again but much louder this time. He followed the noise until he came to Prof. Oak personal research lab. He turned on the lights and saw the GS ball had rolled off the table.  
"So it was this all the time," he commented as he picked it up.  
**A weak body,** he heard a voice say, **but it will do.**  
Tracey watched as the gold and silver ball opened and a dark shadow emerge. He tried to scream when it soon began to cover him.  
**The less you fight,** he heard the voice say, **the more likely you will survive once I'm through with you.**  
Tracey fell to his knees, clinching his chest. Soon the shadow submerged itself in him. He opened his closed his eyes to with a flash of red light.  
"I must find Destiny now," he said as he stood up. "Her end is near."


	15. Default Chapter Title

Pokémon: Masters  
Chapter Fifteen – The Enemy Within

It was quiet in the forest. The only motion was the wind blowing through the leaves on the branches. Suddenly, the silence was broken when a small tree exploded.  
"Nice shot," Brock commented as he looked through his binoculars.  
"I was aiming for that rock right over," Ash sighed. He pointed to large boulder only a few feet away. "Guess I over shot it."  
"Maybe we should get a little further away," Misty advised to Brock and Bill.  
"Or wait until Sabrina arrives," Bill added.  
"We don't have time to waste," Ash told them. "Serebi told me that HE could appear at any moment."  
"If you rush your training," Brock replied, "you might end up destroying yourself in the process of fighting him."  
"I couldn't agree more," Sabrina said as she walked up to them.

Tracey walked through the streets of Pallet searching for his prey. He felt unfamiliar with many of the things he came across on his hunt.  
"How many centuries has passed since she imprisoned me," he said to himself as he passed May Oak.  
"Good morning, Tracey," she greeted.  
"Greetings," he replied as he walked on.  
May was surprised by his reaction. She often felt that he had a crush on her because he was tried to draw pictures of her.  
"Tracey, is everything all right?" she asked.  
"I am a bit confused," he admitted. "Can you tell me how to get to Pokémopolis?"  
"The ruins?" May replied. "It's about a mile west of here."  
"My thanks," Tracey said as he followed her directions.  
"Weird," May commented as Tracey walked off.

Inside Tracey's mind, the shadow had Tracey chained to a wall. In what would have been its hand was a long whip.**  
Stop resisting,** the shadow shouted to Tracey. **Just tell me what I want to know!  
**Tracey struggled to avoid whip. He knew the shadow controlled his body, but it was not going to get his mind without a fight.  
"Never," he snapped back.  
**I swear I'll destroy this measly village if you don't tell me where Destiny is!**  
Tracey gulped at that threat. He believed the creature was quite capable of fulfilling that promise.  
"I don't know where Ash is," he replied.  
**Ash?** the shadow questioned. **Is that what she calls herself now?**  
"She?" Tracey said now puzzled.  
**She must be Destiny no more,** the shadow commented to itself. **Another has taken her place.**  
The shadow glared at Tracey.  
**I have no more time for games, boy,** it snapped at him. **Give me your mind!  
**Tracey screamed in pain as the shadow once again whipped him into submission.

"Concentrate, Ash," Sabrina instructed.  
"Shouldn't we be working on large stuff," Ash complained. "I don't think lifting a pebble will stop this thing."  
"First, you must learn to control the power," Sabrina replied. "Once you can do that, size doesn't matter."  
"What ever you say," Ash said as he glared at the pebble. It slowly began to rise off the ground.  
"Yes," Sabrina commented.  
Ash felt a bit cocky at the show of power and began to left a smaller boulder as well.  
"Careful, Ash," Sabrina warned. "You don't want to overdo it."  
"Like you said," Ash smirked as he began to left her off the ground as well, "size matters not."  
"That's not what I meant," Sabrina reminded him as he joined the other floating objects.  
"This is fun," Ash said as he began to make them go in circles.  
"PUT ME DOWN NOW!" Sabrina screamed.  
"You said I needed to learn control," Ash reminded her. "What better way than complicated movements."  
"I WILL NOT SAY IT AGAIN!" Sabrina screamed back.  
"Spoil sport," Ash sighed as he lowered her.  
Once her feet were on the ground, she walked over to Ash and smacked him.  
"DON'T YOU EVER DO THAT AGAIN!" she screamed in his ear.  
"And I thought Misty was bad about that," he sighed.

****

Will you cooperate now? the shadow asked Tracey.  
"Never," he huffed.  
**Maybe I will have to find another means of persuasion,** the shadow told him as in the mist a pictured formed of three pokéballs.  
**An injured Scyther, a Marril, and a Venonat,** the shadow told him. **You get to pick which one I destroy.**  
"Leave them alone!" Tracey yelled at his captor.  
**I think the Scyther since it is past its prime,** the shadow commented. **I would really be doing it a favor.**  
"All right," Tracey sighed. "I'll tell you what you want to know."  
**I knew you would see it my way,** the shadow replied.

Ash, Misty, and Brock were fast asleep in a guestroom in the Saffron gym. Bill said he wanted to go back to his lighthouse since he failed to get much information on Serebi.  
Pikachu had released their pokémon and decided they needed to know what was going on.  
*So Serebi is real,* Bulbasaur commented. *It's good to know that the time pokémon is a grass type.*  
*That's not what I wanted to tell you,* Pikachu replied. *Something big is going to happen.*  
*Like what?* Squirtle asked.  
*HE is back,* Pikachu told them. They were silent until Charizard spoke.  
*Is Ash ready?*  
*I hope so,* Pikachu said as he looked up at the night stars. *I seriously hope so.*

Tracey stepped over the unconscious body of Dr. Eve's assistant. So far, he taken out most of her team, but he failed to find what he was looking for. He walked in the direction of the Destiny Temple when he meet the only remaining member of the expedition.  
"Oh, hi, Tracey," a voice called out from the ruins.  
"Hello, Dr. Eve," he replied.  
"What brings you here?"  
"Prof. Oak thinks he might know some more about the carving in the Destiny Temple," he lied. "I was sent to make some sketches."  
"Fine," Eve replied. "I better go with you."  
"I'm afraid I can't allow that," Tracey said as black energy was released from his fingertips.  
As he walked away from Dr. Eve, he could not help but smile at the weakness of humans.  
"Soon, I will be rid of them all," he laughed as he entered the temple.

While Ash and Sabrina continued his training, Brock and Misty were at a park with Pikachu and Togepi.  
"I'm worried, Brock," Misty told her older friend. "I'm really afraid Ash is going to get hurt."  
"Don't worry," Brock replied. "He has us with him."  
"But he said that both Mew and Serebi could take on this thing," she reminded him. "What if he's not strong enough."  
"Misty, he has taken on Mewtwo, Titans, Team Rocket, and countless other challenges," Brock told her. "He'll do just fine."  
"That's what you think," a new voice replied.  
Both looked and saw Tracey coming to join them.  
"Why are you here?" Misty asked. "And what did you mean by that?"  
"It's a pity I can't destroy you now," Tracey replied. "But you will make excellent bait."  
Before either Brock or Misty could saw another word, Tracey knocked them both unconscious.  
"Pikachu?!" Pikachu screamed when he saw what Tracey did to his friends.  
"Go tell Destiny that I'll be waiting for him here," Tracey instructed the pokémon.  
Pikachu ran off to find Ash, leaving Brock and Misty with Tracey.

"You seem ready to take on me," Sabrina commented, "but is that enough for this thing you've been talking about?"  
"I don't know," Ash replied.  
He was about to continue with some teleporting when Pikachu came running up to him.  
*Ash, HE is here,* Pikachu said in between breaths. *HE has Misty and Brock.*  
But just as Ash was about to take off, Pikachu continued, *Tracey is HIS body.*

****

You've done well, the shadow congratulated Tracey. **I would never have thought I claim a friend of Destiny.**  
"Ash will beat you," Tracey snapped at him.  
**But he has to go through you to do it,** the shadow reminded him. **I doubt he will have the stomach to hurt his own friend.**  
The shadow let out a laugh that sent chills through Tracey.  
**Maybe I should use the girl instead,** the shadow laughed. **If he can't harm his friends, what will he do if it was his love?**  
"You leave her alone," Tracey yelled at the shadow. "You have what you want."  
**He is here,** the shadow said as he turned away from his captive.

"So, it's true," Tracey smirked as he saw Ash approach. "There is a new Destiny."  
"Tracey, listen to me," Ash pleaded. "This thing is evil."  
"Sorry," Tracey continued to smirk, "but Tracey ain't here."  
Tracey formed a ball of black energy in his hand and sent it to Ash. Ash managed to dodge it, but it hit a tree, causing it to explode. The force of explosion sent Ash flying toward his unconscious friends.  
"Let the destruction begin," Tracey laughed.  
"Tracey," Ash began to plead again, "don't do this."  
"Hearing say that as you die will make this so much more enjoyable," Tracey laughed.  
"You leave me no choice then," Ash sighed. "I will have to destroy you both."  
Ash's eyes turned gold as he began to form a energy ball of his own.  
"So it must be," Tracey replied as his own eyes turned blood red.


	16. Default Chapter Title

Pokémon: Masters  
Chapter Sixteen – The Perfect Fortress

Tracey managed to dodge the energy ball from Ash but was knocked down from the explosion it created. Tracey looked up at Ash with his crimson eyes.  
"You missed," he smirked as he blasted Ash.  
Ash took the blast in the chest, sending into the center of the park.  
"You're not getting away that easy," Tracey laughed as he hunted Ash down.  
Seeing that he had a disadvantage, Ash took the smart route; he hid.  
"Tracey, why are you doing this?" he asked as he ducked behind some bushes.  
"Destiny trapped me in the cursed pokéball for centuries," Tracey replied as he shot an energy ball in Ash's direction. "I thought I return the favor."  
"Tracey," Ash pleaded, "you're my friend. Don't make me hurt you."  
"Unfortunate for you," Tracey laughed as he moved closer to Ash's position, "I have no such convictions."  
Tracey made a dive when he saw Ash had sent a rock flying at him.  
"Nice try," Tracey commented.  
Ash sighed. He did not want to hurt Tracey, but he was left with no choice. He jumped out of his hiding spot and tackled his friend.  
"So, you can fight," Tracey laughed as he gave Ash a punch in the stomach.  
While Tracey continued to pound Ash, he did not notice Ash was forming another energy ball. Before Tracey knew, Ash slammed it into his back.  
Tracey let out a scream of pain which allowed Ash to slip out of his reach.  
"Come back here, you little pest," Tracey snapped at him.  
"If you insist," Ash replied. He turned and nailed Tracey with an uppercut to jaw.  
After another jab to the stomach, Tracey fell to ground. After five minutes, he failed to get up.  
"Tracey?" Ash asked.  
"Ash," Tracey replied in a weak voice, "help me."  
"Tracey, is it you?"  
"Help me," Tracey repeated.  
Ash knelt down to help him, but Tracey jumped up and grabbed his wrists.  
"Fool," Tracey laughed. "This body is useless. How about I take yours?"  
While Ash struggled to get free of Tracey's grip, a shadow emerged from Tracey. Ash watched in horror as the shadow left his friend and entered him.  
Once the shadow had entered its new body, both boys collapsed to the ground.

****

Finally, the shadow laughed, **revenge will be mine.**  
It looked around its new environment. While Tracey's mind was neatly organized, Ash's was a chaotic mess. Even through the efforts of Anna, Serebi, and Scott of the TR psychics, many of the old mental barriers still existed in his brain.  
**Come out, come out, wherever you are,** the shadow called as he drifted through Ash's mind.  
"Come and catch me," Ash called back.  
**You're just delaying the inevitable,** the shadow replied as he slammed into an invisible wall. **Everyone succumbs to my power.**  
"There's always a first," Ash replied.  
The shadow was becoming annoyed at the hunt. Most of its former victims were so easy to control, given the correct form of persuasion, but here, even the body refused its commands.  
**Listen, you little brat,** it snapped. **I have no time for this foolishness.**  
"Too bad," Ash shouted. "I seem to have all the time in the world."  
The shadow seethed at the reply. Even the former Destiny showed it more respect than this boy.  
**Listen, boy,** it shouted as it wondered into a blue mist, **I am the most powerful pokémon imaginable.  
**"I have a pretty big imagination," Ash laughed. "I doubt you're that powerful.  
**All right, you insignificant,** it snapped, **I was the first pokémon.**  
"And that means?" Ash called.  
**Fool,** the shadow replied. **I'm the ruler of pokémon. They are my slaves.**  
"I seriously doubt that," Ash replied.  
**It was the first Destiny that ruined everything,** it cried, **but at least she had the courage to face me.**  
"And so will I," Ash replied, "when the time is right."  
**I have decided a fitting end for you,** it said, hoping to bait Ash out of hiding. **I will use your body to regain control over this world.**  
"Aren't you forgetting something?" Ash replied.  
**And what would that be?** the shadow asked.  
Ash jumped in front of the shadow. "You have to beat me first," he replied.  
Ash sent a wave of lightning at the shadow, driving it back in pain.  
**How very inventive,** the shadow panted. **Distract me, then come up from behind.  
**"I have three friends who were masters at that," Ash commented.  
**Indeed,** the shadow replied, **but you've made one mistake. You left me alive.  
**The shadow made a rush for Ash but was driven back when Ash held out a lantern.  
"I figured that as a shadow you would be afraid of light," Ash stated as he walked closer.  
**This isn't over yet, boy,** the shadow snapped as it cowered away from the light. **If I can't have this body, I will find another.**  
"Really?" Ash smirked. He pulled the GS ball out of his pocket.  
**Keep that thing away from me,** the shadow screamed.  
"I guess we all have fears," Ash laughed, "even shadows."  
**This is not over,** the shadow replied as it faded away, **not by a long shot.**

Ash opened his eyes and saw the shadow creature fly off into the night sky. He turned to Tracey first and saw he was coming around.  
"What happened?" he asked with a groggy voice.  
"You don't remember?" Ash replied.  
"Remember what?" Tracey said as he began to stand up.  
Ash looked around and saw Misty and Brock still asleep on the bench.  
"Misty," he said as he gently shook her. "Time to wake up."  
"Just five more minutes," she replied.  
"I think she's out of it," Tracey commented. "Come to think of it, I wouldn't mind taking a nap myself."  
Ash, using a bit more force, woke Brock.  
"Why did you do that?" Brock demanded. "I was having the dream where Nurse Joy and I…"  
"Not now, Brock," Ash sighed as he picked up Misty. "Let's just get to Sabrina's, all right."  
"How come she gets to sleep?" Brock asked.  
"You want to wake her?" Ash replied.  
"Good point," Brock admitted.

****

Ash, a voice called to him in his sleep.  
"Yes," he replied.  
**You did well,** the voice continued, **for the first time at least.**  
"Thank you," he answered as he sat up to see Serebi hovering over the foot of his bed.  
**It still got away,** Serebi told Ash, **but it will be back.**  
"I hope not," Ash sighed. "I don't think I could take it coming into my mind again."  
**That was a marvelous strategy,** Serebi commented. **Even the most powerful minds can get lost in there.**  
"Thanks, I think," Ash replied, trying to figure out if that was a compliment or not.  
**I came to warn you as well,** Serebi told him. **Its next body will be more willing to its control.**  
"What does that mean?" Ash asked.  
**The less power it takes to control the body,** Serebi informed him, **the more it has to take care of you.  
**"I'll remember that," Ash told the green fairy.  
**I better let you rest,** Serebi said as she began to float out the window. **Your mate has something planned for tomorrow.**  
"My mate?" Ash asked.  
**Sorry, **Serebi said as she stopped just before the window. **I sometimes get your age mixed up. Anyway, farewell.**  
Ash sighed as he laid back down.  
"She probably meant Misty," he said as he drifted back to sleep.

Shane looked at his three brothers standing in front of his desk. They had a decision to make.  
"Are we in agreement, then?" he asked.  
"Yes," they replied.  
"Then, Matt, since you are the youngest," Shane told his younger brother, "you will challenge first."  
"I am ready," Matt replied. "I will give the challenge tomorrow."  
"Very well," Shane said as he turned to Jake. "Remember, this will be done according to the rules of the Pokémon League."  
"Yes, brother," Jake snarled.  
"Then it is settled," Shane said as he took picked up a document off his desk. "Tomorrow, Ash Ketchum will face the first of the Rocket Brothers."

Giovanni stared at the barred window of his cell. Thoughts of revenge flowed through his mind. Revenge against the arrogant guards of the prison, revenge against his sons for betraying him, but more importantly, revenge against Ash Ketchum.  
"I have to get out of here," he sighed as he sat down on his cot. Even the luxuries the former warden allowed him were gone.  
**Perhaps I can help,** a voice from outside the window replied.  
"Who's there?" Giovanni asked going to the window.  
**One who has a way to give you everything you want,** the voice answered. **I have only one thing to ask for in return.**  
"And what is that?" Giovanni asked.  
**Your body,** the shadow replied as it came through the wall.  
"What are you?" Giovanni asked as he backed to the bar on the far side of the cell.  
**There is no need to fear me,** the shadow said as it drifted closer. **We have a common enemy, you and I. Ash Ketchum.**  
Giovanni began to relax at the proposal the shadow was making.  
**You're interested,** the shadow said, noting the change in the crime boss's attitude. **Good. You give me your body, and together, we'll destroy Destiny, I mean Ketchum.**  
"Sounds pretty good," Giovanni replied, "but what about afterwards?"  
**That remains to be seen,** the shadow replied. It stuck out what appeared to a hand to Giovanni. **Do we have a deal?**  
Giovanni stared at the hand for a minute. He reminded himself of all the stories about making pacts with devils and their results.  
"I agree," Giovanni said as he shook the hand.  
**Good, **the shadow replied as it quickly entered Giovanni's body through the hand.  
Giovanni fell to his knees and clinched his chest as the wave of pain surge in his body.  
"You know my friend," Giovanni said as he blasted a hole in the wall, "this looks like the beginning of a beautiful relationship."


	17. Default Chapter Title

Pokémon: Masters  
Chapter Seventeen – Twilight

Ash sat in the sterile white waiting room. Misty and Brock had already left to get rooms at the Pokémon Center, leaving him alone for Tracey.  
"Paging Ash Ketchum," the intercom announced. "Paging Ash Ketchum."  
He put down the old edition of Pokémon Weekly and headed to the nurse's station.  
"You Ketchum?" a doctor asked.  
"Yeah," he answered. "How's Tracey?"  
"He seemed to suffer some minor head trauma," the doctor replied. "I like to keep him overnight."  
"Whatever you say," Ash said as he let out a big yawn.  
"I think you should get some rest," the doctor commented. "Your friend is not leaving here tonight."  
"Thanks, doc," Ash said as he headed to the exit.

It was early the next morning when Dr. Eve called Prof. Oak, but he had already been up a few hours to feed the pokémon in his reserve.  
"Eve, what a pleasant surprise," Oak greeted the young archeologist.  
"Professor, have you heard from your assistant Tracey?" she asked cutting to the point of the call.  
"He ran off a few days ago," Oak answered. "Why do you ask?"  
"He was around the ruins when we had some weird accident," she replied. "I was just wondering if he was all right."  
"What kind of accident?" Oak asked intrigued.  
"My team was knocked unconscious," she answered. "Also, it looks like one of sites was tampered with."  
"Do you think Tracey was involved?" Oak asked her.  
"I seriously doubt it," she said as a large truck pulled up behind her. "The group from the Pewter Museum has just arrived, so I better deal with them. Bye, Professor."  
"Good luck," Oak said as she hung up.  
"I better get up with Ash," Oak said as he called Bill to find out where he left Ash and his friends.

"I know I left it somewhere around here," Giovanni commented as he pushed through the tall grass. "Here it is."  
Giovanni looked down at the stone tablet that once was buried in the deepest portions of the ruined city.  
"Almost time," he said as he looked off to the mountain range in the distance.

"How's it going, buddy?" Ash asked Tracey.  
"Fine, considering. I just wished these things closed a bit more in the back," Tracey commented as he tried to keep the hospital gown from exposing his rear.  
"Maybe you should get back in bed," Brock laughed.  
"The doctor said I should try to walk a bit," Tracey replied. "Just to make sure I won't collapse once I'm released."  
"Good idea," Ash agreed. "Wouldn't want you holding us up when we head back to Pallet."  
"And you getting us lost won't?" Misty asked.  
"I never get lost," Ash shouted. "I just don't always know exactly where I am."  
"Shush," a nurse told him. "You need to be quiet here."  
"Yes, ma'am," Ash replied as Misty giggled. "What's so funny?"  
"You," she answered.  
"Oh, really," Ash said as he looked at in the eyes. "Am I just a joke to you?"  
"No, not just joke," she smiled, "but you never stop making me laugh."  
Ash did not know whether to take it as a compliment or insult. Luckily, a newcomer broke up their conversation.  
"Ketchum," a voice behind him called, "I challenge you to a pokémon battle."  
"Me too," another said.  
Ash turned around and saw the younger Rocket Brothers, Matt and Jake, at the door to the hospital.

Giovanni flew over a field of Gloom which stared up the human in the air.  
"Soon," he laughed as he zipped into the Viridian Forest, "I will be your master once more."  
He continued his flight until he reached his destination. At the base of a gnarled oak, he picked a scroll. Smiling, he flew in the direction of a nearby mountain range.

"It's simple really," Matt said as he walked up to Ash. "I challenge you now, and once we're through, you get to face Jake here."  
Ash glanced at Misty. She nodded back. 'We're finally be through with Team Rocket forever,' he thought as he stepped up to the brothers.  
"You're on," he replied. "Since I have to fight two of you, let's make it a one-on-one match."  
"Whatever you say," Jake smirked.  
"Tomorrow then," he told them. "We'll take care of it at the Saffron City Gym."  
"Sure," Matt shrugged.  
"Just make sure Sabrina doesn't interfere," Jake warned Ash as the two brothers left.  
Misty looked at Ash as they disappeared.  
"You up to this?" she asked.  
"I have to be," he replied. "Otherwise, they'll never stop."  
Misty nodded in agreement. Maybe after all this, they could go on with their lives. This scared Misty in a small way. Now that Ash was through with his pokémon journey, what would they do now? They all would split up with Brock and her going back to their gyms and Tracey and Ash going home.  
"I better go get my pokémon," Ash said, breaking her train of thought. "I want to get in a little exercise before the match."  
"See ya later," Tracey called to his friend as he walked outside. "What are we going to do while he's off training?"  
"I think I'll help him," Misty replied. "Ash is going to need all the help he can get."  
"But are you going to help him with his training or something else?" Brock smirked.  
"Perhaps a little of both," she grinned, "if he's lucky."

When Ash walked into the Pokémon Center, Nurse Joy gave him the message to call Prof. Oak.  
"What's up?" he asked as the pokémon researcher appeared.  
"Ash, I was wondering if Tracey was with you," Prof. Oak replied.  
"Yeah, he showed up a few days ago," Ash replied.  
"What kind of shape was he in?"  
"Why do want to know?" Ash asked nervously.  
"I just received a call from Dr. Eve this morning," he replied. "She said something weird happened when Tracey arrived at the site the other day. I was wondering if he was okay."  
"He's was kinda out of it," Ash told him. "He had to be taken to the hospital."  
"Is he all right?" Prof. Oak demanded.  
"He's fine now," Ash hurriedly replied. "Just a bit beat up, that's all."  
Prof. Oak frowned at the young trainer. "Tell me everything."  
"I'll try," Ash sighed as he began to tell about the shadow that had taken over both Tracey and himself.  
"And this thing came from the GS ball?" Prof. Oak asked when Ash was finished.  
"That's what Tracey told me," Ash replied.  
"I think we better figure out what exactly was in it," Prof. Oak grimaced. "I'll call up some associates of mine to find out."  
"Thanks, Professor," Ash replied as the image disappeared.  
He looked over at Nurse Joy who was holding five of his pokéballs.  
"I guess I better get to work," he sighed as he picked up the tray.

"Are you ready?" Matt demanded.  
"Ready to beat you," Ash replied.  
"We'll see about that," Matt smirked. "Go, Raticate!"  
"Squirtle, I choose you," Ash countered.  
"Raticate, hyper fang!" Matt commanded.  
As the large rat leaped at Squirtle, Ash shouted for Squirtle to withdraw. When Raticate chomped down on the turtle, all it received was a chipped tooth.  
"Shake it off," Matt shout at it as it screamed out in pain.  
"Squirtle, hydro pump!" Ash called to the pokémon.  
"Squirt," he nodded as he withdrew into his shell again.  
"Raticate, quick attack," Matt counted but was too late when Raticate crashed into his trainer.  
"Ash wins!" Misty shouted with joy into Tracey and Brock's ears.  
"Not so loud next time," Brock replied.  
"Sorry," she blushed.  
Jake snickered as his younger brother recalled his fainted pokémon.  
"My turn," he said as he pulled out a pokéball. He tossed into front of Ash and a strange looking bug pokémon appeared.  
"What's that?" Ash asked as he pulled out Dexter.  
"Heracross," Dexter chirped. "This recently discovered pokémon likes to use its horn to toss its opponents in the air."  
"Are we going to fight or what?" Jake demanded.  
"Squirtle return," Ash replied. "Charizard, I choose you!"  
Charizard grunted at the his opponent.  
"Charizard, let's show these guys who's the best," Ash shouted. "Fire blast!"  
"Ash," Misty cried, "don't you think that's over doing it?"  
Ash ignored as he watched Charizard send the flaming figure at Heracross.  
"Counter it," Jake commanded.  
Heracross turned around and looked at its trainer while the flames crashed into his back. Heracross fell to ground with a loud thud.  
"Man," Matt commented. "I guess you haven't been enough training lately."  
"I have more important things to worry about than stupid pokémon," Jake grumbled as he recalled his fallen pokémon.  
"I hope Rob does better," Matt sighed.  
"We won!" Ash cheered as he hugged the dragon. "Two down, and two to go!"  
"I guess some things never change," Brock laughed as he watched Ash dance around with Pikachu and Charizard.

Giovanni looked up at the mountain before him.  
'This is where it'll begin again,' he thought as he began to climb Mt. Moon.

Author's Note:

Sorry about the delay in continuing this series, but I had no idea how to make a proper ending until last week. I'll probably end the whole thing by next week.

Jaxxon


	18. Default Chapter Title

Pokémon: Masters  
Chapter Eighteen – Midnight

Giovanni stared up the mountain in front of him. He tried to remember what so important about this particular mountain, but all he could recall was what the shadow told him. He had to reach the top.  
"Soon," he said as he began to climb. "Soon it ends."

Misty lay by the pool at their hotel in Saffron, working on her tan. After Ash's battle with the younger Rockets, all that was left were Rob, the only true trainer of the four, and Shane, the oldest and coldest of the four. Ash had defeated Rob once in the league, but could he repeat it?  
"Hey, Misty!" Ash called.  
She looked over and smiled. "What is it?" she asked.  
"I was wondering if you like to go out for lunch," he replied. "Sabrina told me of a terrific place near her gym."  
"Sure," Misty answered as she shielded from the sun with her hand. "Just pick me up at my room in about an hour."  
"All right," Ash said as he sat down in a lounge chair next her.  
"Was there something else?" she asked.  
"I just talked with Rob," he replied. "We have our match setup for this afternoon. He told me Shane will challenge me in his own time."  
"That's good," she sighed happily. "One more step to be done with this whole thing."  
"Yeah," he continued. He began to chuckle. "You know, I really can't imagine how we're going to live without Team Rocket. It took weeks before I got over the fact Jessie and James weren't after Pikachu. Now, no Team Rocket at all."  
Misty smiled at her boyfriend.  
"I better go take a shower," she told him. "Give me an hour."  
"Yes, ma'am," Ash replied.  
Misty giggled as they walked back up to their rooms.

"Clefairy!" the pink pokémon shouted at the human.  
"Out of my way," Giovanni snapped as he slapped the pokémon away. "I have no time for you worthless rejects."  
"Cle cle fairy!" it shouted back.  
"Know your master," Giovanni replied as a gust of wind knocked the pokémon into the side of cave. The clefairy did not rise once it fell to the ground.  
Giovanni smirked as he continued through the cave.

"Misty, have you thought about what we're going to do after this?" Ash asked as the waiter brought their meal.  
"I figured you go back to Pallet, and I talk my sisters in letting me stay there," she replied.  
"I got a scholarship to Pokémon Technical when I won the Championship," Ash told her. "I was thinking about enrolling."  
"That's wonderful," Misty congratulated. "It's close enough to Cerulean, so I could stay home."  
Ash smiled. If he stayed in Pallet or took the scholarship, they could still be together.  
"What are you going to study?" she asked.  
"I was think about taking a gym leader course," he replied. "Maybe a few medical courses."  
"Dr. Ketchum," Misty laughed. "Stranger things have happened."  
Ash frowned at her.  
"I'm just kidding," Misty apologized while trying not to laugh, "but I wonder how Brock would react if he went into a Pokémon Center and found you instead of Nurse Joy."  
"He probably propose to me before he realized it," Ash laughed. "You know how bad his eyesight is."  
"Well, whatever you do," Misty said as she forked a piece of her salad, "I'll always be happy to just be with you."  
"Thanks, Myst," Ash replied.

"You ready for our rematch?" Ash called to Rob.  
"Ready and waiting," he replied. "Go, Poliwrath!"  
"Ha, we can take him easily, Pikachu," Ash laughed.  
"Pikachu," the pokémon agreed as he jumped in front of his opponent.  
"Ash, don't get cocky," Misty told him. "Poliwrath is still a very powerful pokémon."  
"Don't worry, Misty," Ash replied as he stared at the pokémon. "I won't lose."  
"We'll see about that," Rob commented. "Poliwrath, bubblebeam."  
"Pikachu, take care those bubbles with thunderwave," Ash countered.  
The two attacks did manage to cancel each other out, but the force of the explosion created knock both to the ground. Poliwrath managed to get back up quicker than Pikachu and charged the smaller pokémon.  
"Quick, Pikachu," Ash cried, "agility."  
Pikachu swiftly dodge Poliwrath's tackle and confused the slower pokémon by circling around it.  
"Now, thunderbolt," Ash commanded.  
Pikachu electrocuted the water pokémon with his thunderbolt but only managed to stun it.  
"Shake it off, Poliwrath," Rob told the pokémon. "We can still beat them."  
"I don't think so," Ash interrupted. "Thunder!"  
"Pii-kaa-chuuuu!" Pikachu cried as he unleashed the most powerful of electric attacks. Poliwrath let out a slight moan as it collapsed on the gym floor.  
"Pikachu is the winner," Sabrina called. "Victory to Ash."  
"All right," Ash cried as he picked up Pikachu and tossed him in the air.  
"Ka," Pikachu laughed as his trainer caught him.  
"You did great," Rob said as he recalled his fallen pokémon.  
Ash walked up to Rob. "You did a good job," Rob congratulated him. "I should've remember your primary pokémon was an electrical type."  
"I was just glad you didn't use Quagsire again," Ash replied.  
Misty ran up and hugged Ash by the neck. "You did great," she told him.  
"You sound surprised," Ash replied.  
"I knew you could when," Misty laughed. "'Cause like I said before, I don't date losers."  
"Looks like you got your hands full," Sabrina laughed at the couple. "How about we leave you two alone for a little while."  
Misty and Ash blushed while Rob, Sabrina, and her parents laughed at their discomfort.  
"Come along, dear," Sabrina's mom told her daughter. "I think you embarrassed them enough for now."  
As Sabrina left the other to take care of some gym business, she noticed something strange about the clouds. Earlier it had been a clear sky, but now it was filled with dark storm clouds.  
"Something wrong?" her father asked.  
"Yes," she replied. "Something is terribly wrong."

Shane looked out the window of his penthouse office. The Silph Co. Tower was the tallest building in Saffron, and he enjoyed looking down on the people below. He heard the door open and closed.  
"How did it go?" he asked.  
"I lost," Rob answered.  
"I see," Shane emotionless replied. "A storm is coming."  
"I thought we were supposed to have to clear skies for the next few days," Rob said as he joined his older brother at the window.  
"That's the problem with the future," Shane told his brother. "It's never quite as you would expected."  
Rob looked at his brother with a solemn face. Shane sometimes confused him with sayings like that. He figured it was just Shane trying to appear wiser, but it was at times like this that it seriously unnerved him.  
"Would you deliver a message to Ketchum?" Shane told his brother as more of a command than a question. "I will battle him in front of this tower around midnight."  
"Why so late?" Rob asked.  
"I have my reasons," Shane said as he looked up at the storm clouds.

Ash was pacing in his room with Brock and Tracey. He had received the message from Rob and was waiting until it was time. So far, he still had an hour to go.  
"I don't like this," Ash told them. "Something doesn't feel right."  
"Is something wrong?" Brock asked.  
"I just heard Giovanni broke out," he informed them. "I feel like he's coming here."  
"What?!" Brock and Tracey shouted. "Do the Rockets know?"  
"I think so," he told them, "but I haven't told Misty yet. I didn't want to worry her."  
"Ash, we have to tell her," Brock replied. "He could come here looking for you two."  
"I know," Ash sighed. "I'll tell her tomorrow morning."

"Ketchum," Shane greeted Ash and his friends. Behind him stood his three younger brothers.  
"Let's finish this," Ash said as he pulled a pokéball off his belt.  
"I couldn't agree more," Shane replied.

Giovanni had finally reached his destination. A name appeared in his head as pulled him self over the top of the hole. Moon, the mountain was called Mt. Moon. He surveyed what could have been the ruins of ancient shrine, but like most things, it was not important. Finishing his mission was his all.  
The voice within was growing louder. He knew that it must leave his body, but he missed the pleasure it gave him.  
**It is time,** the shadow said as its red eyes glowed in the darkness. **Break the seal and read the scroll. Then my followers will be released from their prisons.**  
Giovanni pulled the scroll out of his pocket. A faded ribbon was tied around it with a clay pokéball seal. Pulling one end of the ribbon away from the seal, the scroll unrolled in his hands. He began to recite the words written while the storm brewed:

"From the flames of hate,"

On Cinnabar Island, Blaine sighed as another tourist attraction was being built. He missed the old days when trainers came here to gain the volcanobadge.  
Suddenly, the volcano erupted, filling the sky with flames.  
"What the…?" he commented as steaks of red light flew away from the volcano.  
"Quick, we need to evacuate," Officer Jenny cried. "That volcano is ready to destroy the whole island."  
Blaine did not heed Jenny or any of the others. He just stared as the lava edged towards the town.

"And the chill of despair,"

The snow-capped mountains of north of Cerulean quickly became engulfed in a blizzard. Seal and Dewgong quickly tried to find cover from the storm, but many were caught in a twister of ice and snow. Throughout the storm, they heard laughter.

"From the stones of fear,"

Earthquakes rocked Pewter as a the ground ripped in two.  
"Everybody over here," Flint called to his children. He was extremely worried. Pewter had never had an earthquake before.  
"Dad," one of the younger ones cried, "I'm scared."  
"Don't worry," he tried to comfort the little one. "We'll be just find."  
'Now if someone could just convince me,' he thought.

"And the breath of death,"

Outside of Pallet, Pidgey and Spearows glared at each, waiting for the other to make the first move. Suddenly, several glowing lights appeared trees surrounding them.  
"Spear?" one of the birds questioned.  
Suddenly, a third flock, a black flock, attacked both the flocks of Pidgey and Spearow but flew off after a moment. One Fearow glared at the retreating flock and turned his attention to its own.

"Of darkness, the children of the night,"

Outside of Stone Town, the keeper of a Evee Ranch got out of bed when all the pokémon began howling.  
"Quiet!" he shouted at them. He heard several growls in return.  
He looked in the pens where several little innocent, brown pokémon should have been. Instead, there were growling shadows. Suddenly, one of the pen gates opened and then another. Soon all the pens were opened.  
The rancher ran back inside and bolted the doors. He ran into a corner and cowered there until the footsteps he had heard stopped.

"Come, and show evil's might."

"I choose wahhh…" Ash cried as a wind knocked him down.  
"What's going on here?" Shane demanded as he tried to remaining standing.  
"I think we should go inside," Rob suggested. "Look's like a storm's coming."  
"No, the storm is here," a voice replied.  
The eight of them looked at the man addressing them.  
"Giovanni," Ash snarled.  
"More than that," Giovanni said as several red eyes appeared behind him. "I am much more than that."


	19. Default Chapter Title

Pokémon: Masters  
Chapter Nineteen – The Darkest Hour Comes Just Before The Dawn

Ash glared at Giovanni. There was something different about him, and he could just place a finger on it. When his eyes turned blood red, Ash recognized the power he had felt.  
"You again," he hissed as his own eyes turned gold.  
"I said I would come back," Giovanni smirked. "And I brought a few friends."  
"Father," Shane said as he stepped in front of Ash, "there is no need for this. I was just about to finish this."  
Giovanni frowned at the boy. "They say one finds immortality in one's children," he replied. "I, however, have found a different course."  
With that he sent a red energy ball at Shane's feet, sending the young man into his brothers.  
"I will deal with you later," Giovanni said as he turned back to Ash. "We end this now, Destiny."  
"Whatever you say," Ash replied. "Pikachu, thunder!"  
As Pikachu began to power up for his attack, one of the shadows behind Giovanni dashed out and tackled him.  
"Umbreon, hypnosis," Giovanni commanded. The sleep waves slammed Pikachu into Ash.  
"Ash, I think we make a run for it," Misty suggested as she helped pick him up.  
"No," Ash grunted. "Like Giovanni said, this ends now."  
Ash pulled out a pokéball from his belt. "Charizard, fire blast!"  
As the dragon appeared, a flock of Murkrow instantly attacked the fire pokémon. Charizard lasted only a few seconds before being forced to the ground.  
"What's wrong, Ashy boy?" Giovanni smirked. "Are your little pokémon not up to the challenge?"  
Ash glared at the possessed man. He did not know who was more in control, Giovanni or that shadow creature. Either way, both had enough hatred to level all of Saffron just to hurt him.

Sabrina gathered as many of her pokémon as possible. She rarely used more than Kadabra for badge challenges, but competing in various tournaments had kept the rest of her pokémon in top shape.  
"I hope I'm not too late," she huffed as she and Haunter ran to the Silph Co. tower.

Ash watched in horror as Brock's Geodude and Shane's Golem were frozen in a block of ice by Sneasel. Giovanni just grinned as one by one his pokémon tore apart the younger trainers' pokémon.  
"Give it up, boy," Giovanni jeered. "If you give yourself to me willingly, I might consider letting your friends live."  
Ash gritted his teeth as he released Squirtle to help Staryu and Poliwag fight off the pack of Houndours and the lone Tyranitar. Most of his other pokémon had already fainted and Bulbasaur was fighting the pack of Umbreons with Zubat and Venonat.  
"This isn't working, Ash," Rob called as he recalled his sixth pokémon to fall. "There's just too many of them."  
"We have to keep trying," Ash replied.  
"I agree," Shane said as he managed to take down the lead Houndoom with Poliwrath. "Once father sets his mind to something, he never gives up."  
Giovanni smirked at his son still calling him father.  
"You would have made a great heir," Giovanni called. "It is unfortunate that you choose the enemy over me."  
"I choose myself," Shane replied.  
"Is there a difference now?"

Sabrina turned the corner and saw a large battle in front of her destination, but it was not the battle that frightened her. The pokémon that Ash was battling were all the dark types. Only rumors of their breed had reach Kanto, but she knew that they could easily defeat a psychic or ghost type.  
"All my pokémon, worthless," she sighed. "I would just be another person to protect if I went down there."  
She hung her head as she watched the rest of the battle.

The last of Misty's pokémon were recalled leaving only three left to deal with the rest of Giovanni's horde.  
"Now you will know true defeat, Destiny," Giovanni called. "I will seal you away for a thousand years in a wretched pokéball."  
'There has to be something I can do,' Ash thought as he noticed Brock and Tracey still had not used Onix and Scyther. A girl in a light blue dress appeared in his mind.  
_"This was my role as Destiny," she said to Ash as she patted her pokémon. "I help to show pokémon their full potential."  
_Ash knew what to do now. Hopefully, it would be enough.  
"Brock, Tracey, hand me Onix and Scyther," he told his friends.  
"Ash, they're still to weak to fight a normal battle, let alone this," Tracey replied.  
"Just do it," Ash snapped back. "It's not as if we have anything to lose."  
Tracey glanced over to Brock, who shrugged and tossed the pokéball to Ash. Tracey followed Brock's lead and gave Scyther's pokéball to Ash.

"Here goes nothing," Ash said as he threw the two pokéballs into the middle of the fight.

Sabrina watched as a giant Onix appeared in the midst of the brawl. As soon as it appeared, it immediately began to glow.  
"It's evolving?" she gasped. "But that's not possible."  
**A lot of things are possible when Destiny is involved,** a voice inside her head replied.  
Sabrina turned around and saw a little green fairy hovering in the air.  
**Now the real fun starts,** she grinned.

Giovanni glared at the two newcomers, a large shiny snake and a red shiny bug.  
"Crush them," he commanded.  
The entire horde thought it best to eliminate all their opponents with a single blast of dark energy. They began to power up while the remaining pokémon of Ash and his allies picked off as many as possible. Soon, the horde had reached the limit of their power intake and released the black lightning into their enemies, causing a large dust cloud. Some of the horde fainted from the backlash or from the drain, but three Houndours and six Umbreons stood after the blast.  
"That should end it," Giovanni smirked as the dust began to settle. "What!?"  
Two pokémon still stood up against him. Never looked affected by the blast except that they were angry at the attack.  
"Steelix, go underground," Ash commanded. "Scizor, metal claw!"  
Both pokémon obeyed the command. Scizor took down one of the Umbreons while the pack of Houndours ran in circles waiting for Steelix to surface.  
"Steelix, now!" Ash shouted.  
Giovanni expected the large iron snake to appear beneath the waiting Houndours since Scizor was handling the Umbreons, but Steelix surface directly the dark Evee evolutions. Now he was done to only three Houndours.  
"Use flamethrower," Giovanni called.  
The flames of the dark hounds engulfed the steel pokémon. When they finally stopped their inferno, the charged pokémon collapsed to the ground.  
"This isn't good, Ash," Misty whispered to him. "We don't have anymore pokémon left."  
"I know," he sighed. "I know."

Sabrina dropped her head with disappointment. It had looked like they were winning until the Houndours finished off the new pokémon.  
"So close," she whispered to no one in particular. "They were so close."  
**It's not over 'til it's over,** Celebi told her. **I have a friend on the way, and he always did have a flare for the dramatic.**

"Now that you've had your fun," Giovanni smirked. "It's time for you to die."  
Ash grabbed Misty's hand and waited for the inevitable. Suddenly, the night sky began to lighten.  
"No, it can't be him," Giovanni snarled. "He won't help you this time."  
"Ash, what's happening?" Misty asked.  
"I don't know," Ash admitted.  
"Houndours, fire blast them now," he commanded.  
All eight flinched as the fire flew towards them, but it never reached them. Ash opened his eyes and saw a glowing figure absorbing the flames.  
"It's you," Ash said as the other noticed they were burnt to a crisp. "You were there when I started my journey."  
It nodded and glared at the dark hounds. The earth beneath them began to shake as large spikes shot out of the ground knocking them out.  
Giovanni gaped as the last of his forces were now unconscious.  
**I will just have to handle this myself,** the shadow as it left the body. Giovanni then collapsed on the ground. **I can handle the likes of you with my bare hands.**  
The shadow launched itself at the fire bird, which shot it to the ground with the flick of its wing. The shadow snarled as it again charged the bird and again being slapped to the ground.  
"It's a rather pathetic pokémon," Matt sneered. "I'm going to capture it."

****

You dare insult me, it snarled. **I am MISSINGNO. The first of all pokémon.**  
"And you're going back where you belong," Ash replied. "Ho-oh, Ancient Power!"  
Once again, the earth began to shake as a spire shot up underneath the shadow pokémon.  
**No, not again,** it screamed.  
A gold and silver pokéball appeared in Ash's hand. "Pokéball, go!" he shouted.  
The shadow screamed again as it disappeared inside the pokéball. Once it had stopped rocking back and forth, Celebi and Sabrina joined them.  
**Cutting it kind of close,** Celebi commented to Ho-oh. **How about you take that thing someplace the humans won't find this time.**  
Ash swore that Ho-oh snarled at the green fairy as it picked up the pokéball and flew off into the rising sun.  
"It's morning," Misty commented.  
"Oh," a little voice moaned.  
Everyone turned to Giovanni as he began to stir.  
"What should we do with him?" Tracey asked.  
"I bet Officer Jenny will be here soon," Shane speculated. "I'm sure she can handle it."  
"What about our match?" Ash asked.  
"I think in light of what has happened tonight," Shane replied, "you won. Come, brothers."  
Ash watched as the four brothers walked inside the tower.  
"It's over now," Ash whispered. "It's finally all over."

To be concluded…


End file.
